Armed men ambushed a military convoy in eastern Pakistan on Thursday, killing at least 11 police officers and injuring seven others.
Police officials told local media that two vans, carrying more than 20 officers, were trapped in rainwater when the “bandits” launched rockets at them.
The convoy came under attack in the Rahim Yar Khan district in a remote area while returning from routine duties aimed at targeting robbers in the region.
Maryam Nawaz, the Punjab chief minister, condemned the attack and vowed that it would not go “unavenged”.
She said that her team of officials was dispatched with “clear directions to sort them out decisively”.
“Sacrifices of police personnel will always be remembered,” she said, instructing the authorities to take immediate action to recover the missing officers.
Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan’s prime minister, ordered “immediate and effective action” against those responsible for the attack. Asif Ali Zardari, the country’s president, also condemned it.
Murad Ali Shah, the neighbouring Sindh province chief minister, offered support to treat the injured officers.
“Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan police should plan a joint operation against dacoits,” he said.
“Punjab police are as brave as Sindh police, both have always fought against terrorism and dacoits,” he added.
The armed groups in the region have consistently posed challenges to the provincial governments of Sindh and Punjab, despite numerous operations aimed at eradicating them.
In April, a review committee of the National Action Plan decided to launch a joint operation by the police forces in the area.
Earlier on Thursday, gunmen opened fire on a school bus in the Attock district of the same region, killing two children, according to the police.
The attack left five other children wounded on their way to school with some as young as five years old.
Police said the attack seemed to be aimed at the driver, who was also injured.
Attock district is near Pakistan’s volatile north west where attacks by armed groups have surged in recent years.
In 2014, Pakistani Taliban gunmen attacked a military run school in the region, killing nearly 150 children.