The attack by the Pakistani defense forces was reportedly in retaliation for a major protest that had erupted in the Bannu area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, leaving several people injured.
Thousands of people gathered to see the funeral procession of slain Pashtun activist Gilaman Wazir as his casket passed through towns and cities from Islamabad to his native village in Waziristan bordering Afghanistan, Voice of America reported.
The protests were organized under the banner of "Amn Pasoon" (Peace Movement) and the demonstrators highlighted that the province survived the displacement caused by military actions.
The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) led the protest, with participation from various local ethnic groups. The protestors demanded an end to the mercenary war and the "terrorist military policy in the Pashtun homeland.
During a high-level meeting held in Islamabad, PTI leaders including Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, and Asad Qaiser gathered to deliberate on the implications of Operation Azm-e-Istehkam in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
A senior journalist Khalil Jibran has been killed by unidentified gunmen near his residence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Landi Kotal town, police said Wednesday.