30 Civilians Killed in Pakistan Airstrikes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

GG News Bureau
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 22nd Sept: At least 30 people, including women and children, were killed in airstrikes carried out by the Pakistani Air Force in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Monday. The attack occurred around 2 am when fighter jets dropped eight LS-6 bombs on Matre Dara village in the Tirah Valley, resulting in a massive loss of civilian life.

Local media reported that many more have been injured, though the exact figures remain unclear. Disturbing visuals from the site showed bodies, including children, scattered across the village. Rescue teams are searching through rubble, raising fears that the death toll may rise further.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has witnessed numerous counter-terrorism operations, with civilians often caught in the crossfire. Earlier this year, Amnesty International warned that recurrent drone strikes in the province show “an alarming disregard for civilian life.” Isabelle Lassee, Deputy Regional Director for South Asia at Amnesty, noted that authorities had failed to protect civilians from escalating attacks, citing a recent drone strike that killed a child as part of an ongoing pattern since March 2025.

According to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police, the province reported 605 terror incidents between January and August this year, resulting in at least 138 civilian and 79 police deaths. August alone recorded 129 incidents, including six Pakistan Army and paramilitary Federal Constabulary casualties.

Following Operation Sindoor, which dismantled nine major terrorist hideouts across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen are reportedly establishing new bases deep inside Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, near the Afghan border. The province’s mountainous terrain and porous borders provide natural cover, with many hideouts dating back to the anti-Soviet Afghan war and post-9/11 American invasion of Afghanistan.