Lakki Marwat attack: suspect killed after 3 young cricketers shot dead, 3 hurt

Update, 27 September 2026, night: police say a key suspect in the attack has been killed. Lakki Marwat police and the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) cordoned off the Abdul Khel area and, in an exchange of fire, killed Manzoor, son of Izzat, a resident of Abdul Khel, 24 News reported. District Police Officer Sajjad Ahmad Sahibzada led the operation. Police say Manzoor was wanted by CTD Bannu in seven cases registered between December 2024 and September 2026, including attempted murder, attacks on police and terrorism. No other arrests had been announced.

Three young club cricketers were shot dead and three more wounded on Sunday 27 September when gunmen opened fire on the loader rickshaw carrying them home from a match in Lakki Marwat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

What happened

The team was returning from a game in Shah Hasan Khel when the attackers fired on the rickshaw near Abdul Khel, police said. Station House Officer Aslam Khan told The Express Tribune that unidentified armed men opened fire on the vehicle. ARY News quoted police as saying the militants appear to have been lying in wait along the route.

Killed: Muhammad Umair, Sadiq Amin and Aliyan.

Wounded: Asifullah, Imdadullah and Ijaz Khan, who were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital in Lakki Marwat.

(Early reports spell the names slightly differently. The Express Tribune gives them as Umer, Siddiq and Aliyan among the dead.)

Police told The Express Tribune that most of those in the rickshaw were cricket players or members of a local peace committee. Local young men returned fire, and there were reports that one attacker was killed, which police had not confirmed. The attackers fled. Police cordoned off the area, collected evidence and began a search operation. No group had claimed the attack by Sunday evening.

A district under pressure

Lakki Marwat sits between Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan, and all three districts have seen repeated militant violence this month. In neighbouring Bannu, 13 men were taken hostage in Hathi Khel while moving their families out of the area; our report: Bannu hostages. In DI Khan, 12 people were killed in attacks on a checkpost in Darazinda: DI Khan attacks. In mid-September, Lakki Marwat police recovered four unidentified bodies from different parts of the district, ARY reported.

Local cricket is one of the few things that still brings young men in these districts together on weekends, which is why an attack on a team on its way home has hit people well beyond the three families.

What to know if you live or travel there

• Follow district police and Rescue 1122 announcements before travelling on rural roads in Lakki Marwat, Bannu and DI Khan, especially after dark.
• In an emergency call 15 (police) or 1122 (Rescue).
• For the national team's fixtures and live scores, see our match centre.

We will update this story if more suspects are named or a group claims the attack.