Child martyred, five injured as suicide attack bid foiled near mosque in Lakki Marwat

At least one child was martyred and five others, including children, sustained injuries after a suicide bombing attempt was thwarted near a mosque in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Lakki Marwat district on Friday.

According to local sources, a terrorist belonging to Fitna al-Khawarij was attempting to target a mosque during Friday prayer in the Khairo Khel Pakka area of Lakki Marwat when residents intervened and stopped him from entering the premises.

Sources said that the bomber was neutralised by locals before he could reach the mosque. However, explosives attached to his motorcycle detonated, resulting in casualties.

As a result, a five-year-old girl was martyred in the blast, while five others, including children, sustained injuries. The injured were shifted to nearby hospitals.

Following the incident, security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to determine further details and assess any additional threats.

Pakistan witnessed a surge in terror activities, particularly in its KP and Balochistan provinces, since 2021, when the Afghan Taliban came into power.

Pakistan launched "Operation Ghazab lil-Haq", killing scores of Afghan Taliban operatives and allied militants and injuring hundreds more.

Despite several rounds of talks, both countries have been unable to reach an agreement, largely due to the Afghan Taliban regime's reluctance to take action against terrorist outfits.