A suicide blast ripped through a wedding ceremony in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s southern district of Dera Ismail Khan on Friday, killing at least five people and injuring several others, police and rescue officials confirmed.
The explosion occurred during a wedding celebration at the residence of a local contractor near Qureshi Mor. A large number of guests were present, with relatives and friends participating in traditional celebrations when the powerful blast took place.
Among those killed was Wahidullah Mehsud, also known as Jaghri Mehsud, a member of a local peace committee. Officials said he had previously been associated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and was considered a close associate of former TTP leader Hakimullah Mehsud before reportedly surrendering to the government.
Other peace committee members, including Noor Alam, Noor Hassan, and Misbah, were also present at the event. Noor Alam was reported injured in the attack.
District Police Officer (DPO) Sajjad Ahmad Sahibzada said the explosion was a suicide attack, adding that the attacker’s severed head had been recovered from the scene, confirming the nature of the blast. Initially, police reported three fatalities and seven injuries, but Rescue 1122 later confirmed the death toll had risen to five.
Rescue teams reached the site shortly after the explosion and shifted the injured and deceased to a nearby hospital. Authorities said search operations were still underway in the debris of the damaged room to ensure no additional victims remained trapped.
A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suicide bomber entered a room where Wahidullah Mehsud and others were seated before detonating explosives.
Religious scholars strongly condemned the attack, questioning the justification of targeting civilians at a wedding celebration. They described the bombing as an act of brutality and (corruption on earth), stating that Islam strictly forbids the killing of innocent people.
The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has remained active in the region, with Pakistani authorities repeatedly accusing militant elements of operating from Afghan territory. Islamabad has urged Afghan Taliban authorities to prevent the use of their soil for attacks inside Pakistan — a claim Kabul has denied in the past.
Security in the area has been heightened, and an investigation into the attack is underway.
