A remote-controlled bomb exploded inside a hotel in Nowshera on Thursday, killing at least 14 people, including six security personnel, and injuring another 22. According to police officials, people had gathered at the hotel in Risalpur Chowk for their Iftar dinner, when the bomb fixed to a bicycle went off.
“The improvised explosive device killed 12 people on the spot and injured another 15,” the district police officer told Pakistan Today. According to him six of the killed were security personnel. Locals and hospital sources said 14 people were killed and 22, among them women, were injured. Police officials said shops in the surrounding area caught fire after the blast making rescue activities difficult. They said a number of security officials were present inside the hotel for their Iftar dinner, adding that they might be the target of the blast.
According to a Bomb Disposal Squad official, eight to ten kilogrammes of explosives were used in the blast. Law enforcement agencies cordoned off the area after the incident and launched a search operation. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Iftikhar Hussain told reporters that 11 people were killed in the blast. He said the fight against militants would carry on until their elimination.
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