At least 10 police personnel were martyred and six injured in a late-night terrorist attack on a police station in northwest Pakistan on Monday, police said.

Monday’s attack occurred at 3 a.m. local time (2200 GMT) when terrorists first targeted constables using snipers and then entered the police station, police officers in Pakistan’s Draban region said.

“After entering the building of the police station, the terrorists used hand grenades which caused more casualties to the police,” said Malik Anees ul Hassan, the deputy superintendent of police in Draban.

The police also retaliated, but the terrorists escaped.

“More than 30 terrorists launched an attack from three directions. There was an exchange of fire for over two-and-a-half hours,” Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial police chief Akhtar Hayat Gandapur told AFP.

As Pakistan heads towards polls, deteriorating law-and-order has grabbed headlines

It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack and whether it was related to the election.

The wounded persons were moved to the district headquarters hospital.

Meanwhile, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar strongly condemned the terrorist attack and said such cowardly acts cannot shake our resolve against terrorism.

He commended the police personnel for thwarting the attack on the police station, as per Radio Pakistan.

He directed to provide every possible medical treatment to those injured in the attack.

The South Asian nation has seen an escalation in incidents of violence in the last few days as it approaches its national elections later this week.

Last week, a blast in Quetta took life of one person on the CPEC road, a national assembly candidate for the elections was shot and killed in the tribal district along Afghan border, and at least four people were killed and five others sustained injuries in a blast at a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) rally in Balochistan’s Sibi.

However, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the army reviewed the law and order situation last week, saying that polls would be held at their scheduled time.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, in a press statement after an emergency meeting held earlier this week, said that those who are trying to obstruct the polls by disturbing the peace would be dealt with strictly.

“There should be no confusion or misunderstanding as the General Elections 2024 will be held on time,” the CEC made it clear.

He said that terrorism is the biggest enemy of the electoral process.

Raja said that despite security challenges, the ECP is fully prepared to hold the elections on February 8.

The CEC also expressed full confidence in law enforcement agencies.