thumb|Shakhi Gate, Kulachi, District Dera Ismail Khan
Dera Ismail Khan (; , ), abbreviated as D.I. Khan, is a city and headquarters of Dera Ismail Khan District, located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is the 10th largest city of Pakistan and third or fourth largest in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population. Dera Ismail Khan is situated on the west bank of the Indus River, at its junction with the Gomal River.
It is south of the provincial capital Peshawar, and northwest of Multan, Punjab. As such the name of the city means "Camp of Ismail Khan."
History
Foundation
Early history
thumb|Map of D. I. Khan
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 atleast seven people and injuring 25, no groups claimed reasonability for the attack.
Geography
Climate
Dera Ismail Khan has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh), bordering on a hot steppe climate (Koppen: BSh), with sweltering summers and warm winters. Rain mainly falls in two distinct periods: in the late winter and early spring from February to April, and in the monsoon in July and September.
D. I Khan is situated at an altitude of 177 metres above sea level.
Demographics
Population
According to 2023 census, Saraiki people are the main ethnic group in Dera Ismail Khan District and city in simple majority. The total urban population of Dera Ismail Khan Tehsil is 217,455, consisting of 114,856 males and 102,465 females, as of 2023.
| label1 = Punjabi
| value1 = 63.05
| color1 = red
| label2 = Jatki
| value2 = 20.60
| color2 = blue
| label3 = Pashto
| value3 = 15.39
| color3 = gold
| label4 = Other
| value4 = 0.97
| color4 = grey
There are 158,342 Saraiki, 34,142 Pashto, 20,784 Urdu, 3,387 Punjabi, 164 Sindhi, 86 Balochi, 88 Kashmiri, 167 Hindko, 3 Brahui, 13 Shina, 2 Balti, 2 Kalasha and 175 other language speakers, out of a total of 217,455.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Religious groups in Dera Ismail Khan City (1881−2017)