CHILAS: Two Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Scouts personnel were martyred and another injured when terrorists opened fire on a security checkpoint along the Karakoram Highway (KKH) in Diamer district early Friday, police officials confirmed.
Diamer SSP Abdul Hameed said the attack took place at 12:15am near Chilas, when armed assailants opened fire from a hilltop on the paramilitary post. Three personnel were hit; Naib Subedar Khush Dad and Havaldar Ashraf later succumbed to their injuries, while Lance Naik Sajid Ali sustained abdominal wounds and is under treatment at Regional Headquarters Hospital Chilas.
The GB Scouts, a federal paramilitary force tasked with internal security and border protection, had nine personnel present at the checkpoint at the time of the attack. Police recovered two grenades, ten spent shells, and counted 17 bullet impacts on the post. The attackers managed to flee.
Following the incident, police, 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 pursue the attackers. Raids are ongoing, though no group has yet claimed responsibility.
GB Interior Minister Shamsul Haq Lone called the assault a “cowardly act” carried out under the cover of darkness. He said a large security contingent had been mobilised to hunt down the perpetrators, vowing they would be brought to justice.
Government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq added that Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan had taken “strict notice” of the incident and ordered security agencies to intensify the manhunt.
The checkpoint itself had been established in December 2023 after gunmen attacked an Islamabad-bound passenger bus near Chilas, killing nine and injuring over 20. Another deadly incident in the same district claimed the life of a Federal Constabulary soldier at a forest checkpoint in July this year.
The Diamer district, which lies on the strategic Karakoram Highway linking Pakistan with China, has witnessed repeated militant attacks targeting security personnel and civilians.
