Attack on health center kills several people in Pakistan

At least five civilians, two soldiers, and three attackers were killed as militants launched a gun attack on the Rural Health Center (RHC) situated in Dera Ismail Khan district of Pakistan's northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province bordering Afghanistan, said military on Tuesday. According to a statement issued by Pakistan military's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the militants launched a gun attack on the health center in the Kirri Shamozai area, leaving seven people dead, including two soldiers of the Pakistan army. The civilians who lost their lives in the gun attack were the staff of the health center, including two lady health workers and a watchman of the facility, besides the two children. The terrorists carried out a cowardly attack on RHC and opened indiscriminate fire on the staff. The Security forces in the vicinity were immediately mobilized for clearance operation in RHC, and in the ensuing fire exchange, three terrorists were killed, ISPR confirmed. The military's media win g stated that "sanitization of the area was being carried out to eliminate any other terrorists found in the area." "The perpetrators of this heinous and cowardly act targeting innocent civilians, especially women and children, will be brought to justice," ISPR added. Earlier in the day, the Pakistan military confirmed that a suicide attack killed eight soldiers of the Pakistan army. In contrast, a retaliatory operation killed ten terrorists in KPK's Bannu cantonment area. The attacks followed the federal government's announcement that it would launch a new counter-terrorism operation named "Azam e Istehkam" against the militants. The announcement comes at a time when Pakistan has witnessed a rise in terror attacks, especially in KPK and Balochistan provinces bordering Afghanistan, after the banned outfit Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended the ceasefire agreement with the government last year. Source: Kuwait News Agency