In recent months, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has seen a troubling resurgence of militant violence, with law enforcement increasingly bearing the brunt of these assaults. Across the province — especially in the southern and western districts — police personnel have faced a steady pattern of ambushes, IED explosions, targeted killings and attacks on checkpoints. Scores of officers have been martyred, while many others have sustained injuries, deepening an atmosphere of fear and instability that extends beyond the police force and into wider society. The relentless nature of these attacks has placed extraordinary pressure on the KP police, prompting growing concern that the force is being stretched to its limits.
Official data released by the KP Police and the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) paints a troubling picture. During 2025 alone, police units in the province were targeted in approximately 536 militant attacks, a sharp increase compared to previous years. These attacks resulted in the martyrdom of around 159 police officers, while hundreds more sustained injuries in bombings, gunfights and ambushes. The figures underline a grim reality: despite intensified counter-terrorism operations and arrests, militant groups retain both the intent and capability to repeatedly strike law enforcement.
The escalation has been particularly pronounced in the southern districts of KP, including Lakki Marwat, Tank, Bannu, Karak and Dera Ismail Khan. In late 2025 and early 2026, a series of targeted attacks further highlighted the deteriorating security situation. Police officials were gunned down in separate incidents in Lakki Marwat and Tank in December, while a policeman was martyred in a targeted shooting in Bannu in January. These were not isolated incidents, but part of a broader pattern in which police patrols, mobile units and checkpoints have increasingly come under fire.
Earlier in 2025, coordinated assaults on police checkpoints and vehicles across multiple districts resulted in several casualties, reinforcing the perception within the force that militants are deliberately focusing on police as the most accessible and symbolically significant arm of the state. CTD assessments indicate that attacks on police personnel increased by more than 50 percent during the year, even as security forces carried out intelligence-based operations and arrested over 1,300 suspected militants across the province.
This relentless violence has had consequences well beyond the immediate loss of life. KP is already grappling with serious economic challenges, and the prevailing insecurity is compounding those difficulties. Business owners and industrialists in several districts have expressed growing anxiety over extortion threats and targeted intimidation, warning that continued instability could force closures or capital flight. While not all allegations have been independently verified, the broader economic impact of sustained insecurity is undeniable. Investment decisions are being delayed, commercial activity is slowing in vulnerable districts, and confidence in the state’s ability to ensure safety is eroding.
The gravity of the situation was starkly illustrated by incidents involving key economic assets, including attacks on infrastructure and private enterprises in southern KP. Repeated assaults on businesses and development projects not only result in tragic loss of life but also send a powerful signal to investors that the security environment remains volatile. Each such incident deepens uncertainty and reinforces a cycle in which insecurity feeds economic decline, which in turn creates further vulnerabilities.
At a strategic level, the renewed wave of attacks has reignited concerns about Pakistan’s broader internal security landscape. KP’s geographic position — bordering Afghanistan and serving as a historical corridor for militant movement — has long made it vulnerable to spillover violence. The post-2021 regional environment appears to have emboldened extremist groups, which have adapted their tactics and reorganized networks to exploit gaps in intelligence and enforcement. The sustained targeting of police suggests a calculated effort to weaken the state’s most visible and locally embedded security institution.
The police force in KP occupies a uniquely demanding role. It is responsible not only for routine law-and-order duties but also for frontline counter-terrorism operations, often in areas where militants enjoy terrain familiarity and local support networks. Recent attacks have exposed long-standing vulnerabilities within the force. Interviews with serving police officers reveal a system stretched thin by manpower shortages, budgetary constraints and equipment limitations. According to senior officials, it is not uncommon for a single police station to be responsible for a population exceeding 100,000 people, an impossible ratio in areas facing persistent militant threats.
Financial constraints remain a critical issue. More than 80 percent of the police budget is consumed by salaries and fixed expenditures, leaving limited funds for training, modern equipment or technological upgrades. While some improvements have been made in recent years, many frontline officers continue to operate with vehicles that offer little protection even against small-arms fire. Armored vehicles remain scarce, particularly in districts officially designated as high-risk or “hot.”
The disparity in weaponry has become an increasingly serious concern. Police officials privately acknowledge that militant groups often possess more modern and sophisticated arms, a situation exacerbated after the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan. This imbalance not only affects operational effectiveness but also undermines morale, as officers are repeatedly sent into high-risk environments with inadequate protection.
Training standards have improved in certain areas, particularly for specialized units such as Elite Forces, often with support from the Pakistan Army. However, senior officers point out a structural dilemma: the acute shortage of personnel makes it difficult to withdraw large numbers of officers for extended training without leaving field formations dangerously understaffed. The result is a constant trade-off between improving skills and maintaining basic operational presence.
Another critical issue highlighted by police leadership is the imbalance in recruitment priorities. Over the years, there has been a heavy emphasis on recruiting constables, often at the expense of strengthening the investigative backbone of the force — Assistant Sub-Inspectors and Sub-Inspectors. These officer-level ranks are essential for intelligence gathering, investigations and proactive policing. Their relative neglect has contributed to a gradual militarization of the force, turning it into a reactive, fire-fighting entity rather than a proactive crime-prevention institution.
The unintended consequence of this approach has been a diminished capacity to detect and disrupt militant networks before they strike. As one senior officer put it, the police are increasingly forced to respond after attacks occur, rather than preventing them through intelligence-led policing. This reactive posture plays directly into the hands of militant groups that thrive on surprise, fear and symbolic violence.
Addressing the deepening crisis facing the KP police requires more than temporary fixes. It demands a sustained, multi-layered response that combines enhanced training, modern equipment, improved intelligence capabilities and meaningful budgetary support. Equally important is stronger coordination among provincial police, CTD, federal intelligence agencies and the armed forces to ensure timely intelligence-sharing and joint operational planning.
At the same time, long-term stability in KP cannot be achieved through force alone. Economic security, community engagement and institutional reform must accompany counter-terrorism efforts if the cycle of violence is to be broken. The sacrifices of KP police officers underscore the urgency of these reforms.
The continued targeting of law enforcement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a stark reminder that Pakistan’s internal security challenges remain far from resolved. The resilience of the KP police has been remarkable, but resilience alone is not enough. Without urgent and coordinated action, the strain on the force risks becoming unsustainable. The stability of KP — and by extension, the security of the country — depends on whether the state can rise to this moment and provide its frontline defenders with the support they desperately need.