Militant attack on Karachi Rangers headquarters kills three, wounds four

Militants struck a Sindh Rangers facility in Karachi’s Gulistan-i-Jauhar neighborhood and killed three paramilitary troops, wounded four others, and set off a gunbattle that lasted about 90 minutes. The attack began around 8:30 p.m. Saturday and left the road near the site under heavy security by Sunday morning.

Three attackers were killed and a fourth was captured wounded. The military identified him as an Afghan national. The Inter-Services Public Relations identified the assailants as members of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, and called the group an Indian proxy. The assault began when militants detonated an explosives-laden vehicle at the entrance before opening fire with guns and grenades.

The Rangers post sat in a densely populated part of the city, near University Road and several universities and close to the Pakistan Meteorological Department. By daybreak, paramilitary officers and police were guarding the road around the compound as investigators assessed the scene and searched for any wider network tied to the attackers.

Karachi had not seen a major terrorist attack since the bombing near Karachi airport on October 6, 2024, which killed one person and injured 11 others, including foreign nationals. The military vowed retaliation after the attack.