At least two people, including a child, were killed and 14 others injured in an explosion near Miryan police station in Bannu district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday, according to Dawn.Police said the blast occurred near shops in front of the station when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated. A police statement cited by Dawn said a time bomb fixed to a motorcycle exploded at the site. Civilians in the vicinity were affected, but police personnel remained unharmed.Rescue teams shifted the injured and the bodies to hospitals. Several of the injured are reported to be in critical condition.Bannu deputy inspector general Sajjad Khan confirmed that the area was cordoned off and a search operation launched. A heavy contingent of police, along with the bomb disposal squad, quick response force and armoured personnel carriers, was deployed. Evidence is being collected and investigations are underway. The BDS team is clearing the site “to ensure timely and effective prevention of any possible further threat”, the police statement said. K-P governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the explosion and expressed sorrow over the deaths. He denounced those responsible, stating that terrorists are enemies of humanity and the peace of the province.Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa opposition leader Ibadullah Khan also condemned the attack, saying, “Elements hostile to peace want to disturb the province’s calm; the nation should unite to confront them.” He termed the killing of innocent citizens “extremely regrettable” and added, “An attack on the province’s peace is an attack on the entire nation; the government must take immediate and effective action. Such cowardly attacks cannot weaken our morale.”Attacks have been reported frequently in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In January, two boys were injured in an explosion in the Domel area of Bannu, one of whom later died of his injuries, Dawn reported.
