Foundation Early history The region around Dera Ismail Khan has been inhabited for millennia, as evidenced by the nearby site of
Rehman Dheri a
pre-Harappan archaeological site dating back from 3300 BCE. In the seventh century, the city had a large population of
Brahmins and
Buddhists.
Medieval history D. I. Khan is located in the historical
Derajat region, which was established in the 15th century, when
Baloch people were invited to settle the region by Shah Husayn, of the
Langah Sultanate of
Multan. The Baloch settlers were assimilated through the later waves of
Pashtun settlement, although villagers along the alluvial plains are typically Baloch or
Jat.
Re establishment of the city The original town was swept away by flooding on the Indus River in 1823. The present city was founded by Nawab Sher Muhammad Khan of the
Saddozai clan in 1825, and now stands four miles (6 km) away from the permanent channel of the river, atop a small plateau. Nawab Sadozai took into consideration the opinions of Diwan Lakhi Mal and Tej Bhan Nandwani for the city's reconstruction.
Sikh rule (1821–1849) Dera Ismail Khan remained under Sadozai rule from the nearby town of
Mankera until it was annexed by
Sikh ruler Maharaja
Ranjit Singh of the
Sikh Empire in 1836. Diwan Lakhi Mal appointed city's
Kardar ruler, though the Nawabs of the city from the Durrani order were allowed to maintain their title and some income. By 1881 the city's population was 22,164. The military
cantonment area, which lies southeast of the town, had an area of , excluding the portion known as Fort Akalgarh on the northwest side. The Dera Ismail Brigade had its winter headquarters at Dera Ismail Khan, and the garrison consisted of a mountain battery, a regiment of Native cavalry, and three regiments of Native infantry. Detachments from these regiments helped to garrison the outposts of Drazinda, Jandola, and Jatta. The "Civil Lines" neighborhood was built to the south. The predominantly Muslim population (which accounted for 60% of the local population of Dera Ismail Khan) may have supported the
Muslim League and the
Pakistan Movement.
After Independence of 1947 After the
Partition of India and independence of Pakistan in 1947, the minority
Hindus and
Sikhs migrated to India, while the
Muslim migrants from India settled in Dera Ismail Khan. In India, Model Town, Vijay Nagar and
Derawal Nagar colony in
Delhi absorbed many Hindu former residents of D. I. Khan. Following an influx of refugees following the 1979
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, D. I. Khan's population tripled. On 29 July 2009, two people were killed and four injured when a bomb planted in car detonated near the district court. On
May 18, 2010, a bomb planted on a motorcycle exploded near a police van killing 13 people while injuring 14. On
25 June 2011, between 10 and 12 militants of
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan attacked a police station in the nearby town of
Kulachi, killing 10 police officers. The
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed the responsibility of these attacks. In 2014, the wide-scale
Operation Zarb-e-Azb was launched against militants throughout Pakistan, which resulted in a greatly improved security environment by 2016, although on January 4, 2017
15 people including five policemen were killed when a remote control planted bomb exploded on Bannu Road. On 17 February 2017, another five people, including four police officers, were killed after unidentified suspects opened fire on a police van near Mission Mor. As part of the 2015
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, it was announced that D. I. Khan would be the terminus of the
Hakla–Dera Ismail Khan Motorway — a four-lane
controlled access motorway, 280 km in length, that is to begin at the
M1 near
Islamabad and serve as part of the
Western Alignment of the economic corridor. On 3 November 2023, a
bomb blast occurred in Dera Ismail Khan, in which a number of people were killed and injured. On 25 January 2026, a suicide bombing took place at the home of Noor Alam Mehsud, a pro-government community leader, killing at least seven people and injuring 25, no groups claimed reasonability for the attack. ==Geography==