Islamabad, March 19 (NationPress) An assistant sub-inspector from the Elite Force was tragically shot by unidentified assailants in the Mano Banda area of Gandigar, located in the Upper Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, as reported by local media on Thursday.

The victim, Bacha Yousaf Khan, was attacked outside his home. He was promptly taken to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries. According to police reports, Khan was on his way to the mosque to perform prayers when the attack occurred, as stated by Pakistan's prominent daily, Dawn.

Following the shooting, a substantial police presence arrived at the scene, securing the area and initiating a search operation for the perpetrators. The Gandigar police have filed a case against unidentified individuals and commenced an investigation. No group has yet claimed responsibility for this heinous act.

Just last week, a tragic incident resulted in the deaths of six police officers and left one injured due to an explosion near a police vehicle in the Bettani tribal region of Lakki Marwat district within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A local police spokesperson indicated that the blast occurred close to a police mobile unit, leading to the fatalities and injuries, as covered by Geo News, a leading media outlet in Pakistan.

On March 8, a senior officer from the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was also killed when gunmen opened fire on him in the Killi Ismail area of Quetta, Pakistan, according to local media. Police reported that Inspector Metha Khan, who had recently joined the CTD, was shot while traveling through the area, with armed assailants on motorcycles fleeing the scene afterward.

Meanwhile, a report from an Islamabad-based think tank highlighted a significant increase of 30% in combat-related fatalities across Pakistan in February, primarily driven by a surge in suicide attacks nationwide.

According to the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), there were 470 recorded deaths and 333 injuries in February, including 96 civilians, 80 security personnel, and 294 militants. The data reveals a notable increase—74% in fatalities among security forces, 32% among civilians, and 21% among militants compared to January.

In February, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa witnessed the deaths of 53 security personnel and six civilians, along with injuries to 35 security forces members and 48 civilians due to three suicide bombings that accounted for 17 fatalities, including 14 security personnel.

In Islamabad, a suicide bombing resulted in the deaths of 34 individuals and injuries to 165 others. Additionally, two police officers were killed, and four were injured in another suicide bombing in Punjab's Bhakkar district, as reported by Dawn.

In total, the first two months of 2026 saw 831 combat-related deaths, with the breakdown being 536 militants, 169 civilians, and 126 security personnel.