JUI-F's Mufti Kifayatullah injured in Malakand home shooting

• Shooting occurs at JUI-F leader's residence in Tehsil Batkhela.
• Mufti Kifayatullah's son, daughter killed in incident: Levies.
• Politician's wife also injured in shooting; suspect fleds scene.

MALAKAND: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl's (JUI-F) Mufti Kifayatullah was injured in a shooting at his residence in Malakand's Tehsil Batkhela, authorities said on Saturday.

Kifayatullah, the district president of the JUI-F, was immediately shifted to the hospital for treatment, according to Levies officials.

The incident also claimed the lives of two of his children, a son and a daughter, while his wife was also wounded during the attack.

Sources told Geo News that the shooter fled the scene after attacking the family.

Pakistan has witnessed a surge in cross-border terror incidents since Taliban rulers returned to Afghanistan in 2021, particularly in the bordering provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

According to a report released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), an Islamabad-based think tank, the country witnessed 78 terrorist attacks during the month of June, which resulted in at least 100 deaths.

Among the fatalities were 53 security personnel, 39 civilians, six militants, and two members of local peace committees.

A total of 189 people were injured, including 126 members of the security forces and 63 civilians.

Altogether, the violence and operations led to 175 deaths in June — among them, 55 security personnel, 77 militants, 41 civilians, and two peace committee members.

The latest attack on Kifayatullah comes against the backdrop of attacks on JUI-F leaders. In March this year, two JUI-F leaders were gunned down in Balochistan's Khuzdar district.

The deceased were identified as Wadera Ghulam Sarwar and Molvi Aman Ullah who received  multiple bullet injuries.

Later in the same month, at least four worshippers, inclding JUI-F's district chief Abdullah Nadeem, were injured in a blast in mosque in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's South Waziristan district.

The politician, believed to be the target, was hospitalised with serious injuries.