In the early hours of Monday, September 22, 2025, a series of explosions tore through a compound in the remote Tirah Valley region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northwestern Pakistan, killing at least 24 people—including women and children. The incident, which unfolded in the Matur Dara area near the Afghan border, has since triggered a storm of controversy and grief, with conflicting accounts from authorities, political leaders, and local residents fueling a heated national debate.
According to multiple reports, including those from The Associated Press and Devdiscourse, the explosions originated at a compound owned and operated by the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Police officials, including Station House Officer Zafar Khan, confirmed that the death toll included at least 14 militants—among them two TTP commanders—and at least 10 civilians, with several others injured. Among the civilian victims were women and children, a fact that has amplified the public outcry.
The compound, described by Mid-day as a hub for improvised explosive device (IED) production and sniper training, housed not only local militant leaders and operatives but also dozens of Afghan fighters. Authorities say the site was packed with bomb-making materials, which detonated with devastating effect, destroying the compound and damaging nearby homes.
Yet, while police and security officials maintain that the tragedy was the result of an accidental detonation of stored explosives, others have cast doubt on this narrative. Local opposition figures, including members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party led by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, have accused the Pakistani military of carrying out night-time air raids as part of a counterterror operation. Iqbal Afridi, a National Assembly member representing the area, told AFP that “warplanes of Pakistani forces conducted air strikes that caused the explosions.” In the provincial assembly, lawmaker Sohail Khan Afridi echoed this claim, declaring, “This assault by the security forces is nothing less than an attack on unarmed civilians.”
Adding to the confusion, the provincial assembly speaker, Babar Saleem Swati, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that civilians were killed and homes destroyed “due to bombardment by jet aircraft.” He warned that such actions could have dire consequences for the country’s future, urging both federal and provincial governments to conduct a transparent investigation and provide compensation to affected families. “When the blood of our own people is made so cheap and bombs are dropped on them, it is a fire that can engulf everyone,” Swati cautioned.
Despite these strong accusations, the Pakistani military and government have yet to issue an official statement as of September 23, 2025. Meanwhile, local administration officials and security sources have categorically denied any involvement of air strikes. Three security officials, speaking anonymously to AP, stated that “there were no strikes in Tirah,” attributing the blast instead to the militants’ own cache of explosives. They explained that the compound functioned as an IED factory in the midst of a residential area, and the explosion spread to nearby houses, killing both militants and civilians. Authorities further alleged that civilians may have been used as “human shields” by the militants, a claim that has not been independently verified.
The controversy has not been confined to official circles. Thousands of mourners attended the funerals of the victims in Tirah Valley, later rallying against the government and demanding justice for the dead. The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) joined the chorus of concern, releasing a statement that it was “deeply shocked to learn that a number of civilians, including children, have been killed, allegedly as a result of aerial bombing” in the Tirah Valley. The HRCP called for “an immediate and impartial inquiry into the incident and [to] hold to account those responsible. The state is constitutionally bound to protect all civilians’ right to life, which it has repeatedly failed to secure.”
In response to the mounting crisis, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur convened a high-level meeting on Tuesday, September 23, to address the law and order situation. Gandapur mourned the civilian losses and announced financial compensation for the families of victims, explicitly excluding militants from this aid. He also stressed the need to avoid civilian casualties in anti-terror operations, acknowledging the pain and anger felt by the local population. The Chief Minister announced plans for a grand jirga—a traditional assembly of elders—to develop peace strategies focused on building community trust and preventing future tragedies.
The Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, have been waging an armed rebellion against the government since 2007. While they share ideological roots with the Afghan Taliban, the two groups operate separately. The TTP has been emboldened in recent years, especially since the Afghan Taliban’s return to power in 2021, with many TTP leaders believed to have found sanctuary across the border in Afghanistan. Security forces have stepped up operations against the group in Khyber, Bajaur, and other parts of the northwest, with the Bajaur campaign alone displacing hundreds of thousands of people since August 2025—many of whom have since returned after the area was cleared.
The Tirah Valley incident has thus become a flashpoint for broader debates about Pakistan’s counterterrorism strategy, civilian protection, and the persistent dangers facing communities caught between militancy and military action. The lack of an official statement from the government and military has only deepened suspicions and fueled speculation, leaving many in the region feeling vulnerable and unheard.
For now, the truth behind the deadly explosions in Tirah Valley remains contested. Was it a tragic accident, as authorities insist, or a botched military operation, as local leaders and residents allege? The answer may have profound implications not just for the victims’ families, but for the future of counterinsurgency and civil-military relations in Pakistan’s troubled northwest.
As the dust settles and investigations are promised, the people of Tirah Valley—and indeed, all of Pakistan—are left grappling with grief, anger, and a desperate hope for accountability and peace in a region long scarred by violence.