11 killed after armed gunmen ambush police convoy in Pakistan

Eleven officers were killed after gunmen armed with rocket-propelled grenades ambushed a police convoy in eastern Pakistan's Punjab province, injuring seven others, according to the authorities.

The police officers were on duty, patrolling in a deserted area ofMachka area of Punjab’s Rahim Yar Khan, where the gunmen ambushed them, Pakistan local media reported.

The Punjab police, in a statement, said that the two police vans were returning from weekly duties in the Machka area when one of the vehicles developed a malfunction, following which the gunmen attacked them with rockets.

The police said that the gunmen were probably robbers and not members of any armed group. N one has claimed responsibility for the attack in the Rahim Yar Khan district’s Kacha town.

Bahawalpur Regional Police Officer (RPO) Rai Babar Saeed told Dawn that “11 personnel were martyred and seven were injured in the attack.”

Pakistan government condemns attack

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack and extended his condolences to the families of the police officers.

Further, the president stressed the need for strict action against criminals in the riverine area and warned that attacks on police personnel or law enforcement agencies would not be tolerated.

Following the attack, Pakistan's Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz condemned the attack and vowed that it would not go "unavenged", adding that her team of officials was dispatched with “clear directions to sort them out decisively”.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered that "immediate and effective action” be taken against riverine bandits.

Watch | Pakistan: 9 Policemen killed, 16 injured in terror attack

Moreover, the country's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, condemning the attack, stressed that such heavy "loss of lives shows the unwavering commitment of the police force to fight with such a menace".

Such incidents in Pakistan have been happening for long. Earlier this month, three policemen were killed by riverine dacoits in an attack on a police check post at the river Indus protective spur near Bhong.

(With inputs from agencies)