- Naib Subedar Khush Dad and Havaldar Ashraf embraced martyrdom, one soldier injured
- GB Interior Minister security forces mobilised to hunt down the perpetrators, vowing they would be brought to justice
DIAMER: Two Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Scouts personnel were martyred and another injured when terrorists attacked a security checkpoint along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) in Diamer district in the wee hours of Friday, police confirmed.
Diamer SSP Abdul Hameed said the assault occurred at 12:15am near Chilas, when armed assailants opened fire from a hilltop on the paramilitary post. Three soldiers were hit; Naib Subedar Khush Dad and Havaldar Ashraf later succumbed to their injuries, while Lance Naik Sajid Ali, who sustained abdominal wounds, is under treatment at Regional Headquarters Hospital, Chilas.
The officer informed that at the time of the attack, nine GB Scouts personnel were manning the checkpoint, adding that the Police later recovered two grenades and ten spent shells and found 17 bullet impacts on the post.
The miscreants managed to flee the scene after the attack.
Following the incident, police teams led by senior officers reached the site within 20 minutes. Reinforcements from the Elite Force and additional police units were deployed to secure the area and launch a manhunt. Search operations are underway, though no group has yet claimed responsibility.
GB Interior Minister Shamsul Haq Lone termed the assault a “cowardly act” carried out under the cover of darkness, adding that a large security contingent had been mobilised to hunt down the perpetrators. He vowed they would be brought to justice.
GB Government’s spokesperson Faizullah Faraq said Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan had taken “strict notice” of the incident and directed security agencies to intensify the manhunt.
The checkpoint was established in December 2023, after gunmen attacked an Islamabad-bound passenger bus near Chilas, killing nine and injuring over 20. Another attack in the district in July this year claimed the life of a Federal Constabulary soldier at a forest checkpoint.
The Diamer district, situated on the strategic Karakoram Highway linking Pakistan with China, has repeatedly witnessed militant attacks targeting both security personnel and civilians.
