Suspected militants blew up part of a government school in Pakistan's northwestern Bajaur district overnight, authorities said on Thursday.
The attack is the latest in a string of bombings targeting educational infrastructure in a region long affected by militant violence.
What happened in the Bajaur school bombing?
The explosion damaged three classrooms of the school in the Loi Kharki area of Mamond tehsil, District Police Officer Khalid Khan said. It struck at around 3 a.m. local time and caused no casualties, since the building was empty for summer holidays.
Bajaur's educational institutions remain closed until Aug. 1, which meant no students or staff were present when the blast occurred. Police cordoned off the area afterward and opened an investigation to identify those responsible and determine how the attack was carried out.
Who is responsible for the attack?
No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing so far. Militant organizations including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Islamic State Khorasan and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar have previously carried out attacks in the region. Their targets have included security forces, government buildings, public officials and civilians.
Officials from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Education Department said they were assessing the damage to the school. They will decide whether to temporarily relocate students to a nearby school or arrange alternate classrooms until repairs are finished.
How often are schools attacked in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?
Attacks on schools have remained a recurring part of Pakistan's decades-long insurgency, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan. The Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack has recorded at least 70 attacks on schools and education personnel in the province over the past five years.
The coalition documented at least 27 school attacks in 2024, including 10 targeting girls' schools, most involving explosive devices. More than 17 attacks on educational institutions were reported across Pakistan in 2025, mostly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while at least nine attacks have been recorded in the province so far this year, particularly in its southern districts and the former tribal regions.
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