Kohat ambush after illegal mining raid kills 11 police, 18 terrorists

A police team returning from an illegal gold mining operation was ambushed in Kohat. The attack highlights alleged links between TTP militants and criminal networks.Stock photo used for illustrationPeshawar,Nov 12, 2026 01:16 ISTEighteen terrorists were killed and at least 11 personnel died after a police team came under attack in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Wednesday while returning from an operation against illegal gold mining.The attack took place in Kohat district and led to a heavy exchange of fire. Five police vehicles were set ablaze, additional forces were sent to the area and an emergency was declared at the District Headquarters Teaching Hospital.The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police public relations director said the personnel had conducted a joint operation with the local civil administration against those involved in illegal gold mining in the Darabukach locality near Kohat city."When the police party was returning after completing the operation, Fitna-al-Khawarij attacked the police party at the behest of criminal elements," the police statement said. "Police personnel fought the attackers with great bravery and courage, as a result of which 18 khawarij were sent to hell," it said, adding that 10 police personnel were killed.Fitna-al-Khawarij is the term used by the Pakistani state for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan. The incident also reportedly exposed an alleged link between criminal elements and the group, according to the statement. Police spokesperson Muhammad Nauman Zeb said the team, which was travelling to the Gumbat Kohat area, came under fire in Darbokach Jalandhar Banda, between Kohat and Karak. Those killed included DSP Gambat Haider Zaman and Sub-Inspector Mukhtiar.Zeb said the attackers continued firing at the police personnel, leading to a heavy exchange of fire. Additional police vehicles and a large contingent of personnel were sent to the scene.Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi expressed grief over the deaths of the police personnel and sought a detailed report, according to a statement from his office.The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies said the country's security situation remained volatile from October 30 to November 5, with renewed terrorist activity in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the former tribal districts, intensified counterterrorism operations and changing patterns of militant violence.The northwestern province has been under governor's rule and emergency since October 11, when the federal government imposed the measures, citing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government's "deliberate disengagement" from the fight against terrorism.The attack on the police team returning from the illegal mining operation left at least 11 personnel dead, while police said 18 terrorists were killed in the ensuing exchange of fire.With PTI Inputs- Ends