PESHAWAR/MIRANSHAH
Two personnel of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed and several others injured in a suicide attack in Peshawar as at least six bombings were reported across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in the tribal areas on Monday.
The FC troopers were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a checkpost near the Iranian consulate on University Road.
SP Ahsanullah said the bomber wanted to target the consulate but was forced to detonate his explosives when the FC personnel stopped him at the checkpost. Nine FC soldiers were injured in the attack.
A spokesman for militant commander Mast Gul, once acclaimed in Pakistan for his role fighting Indian rule in Kashmir, claimed responsibility for the suicide attack.
“We sent a suicide bomber to target the Iranian consulate and Iranians inside the building,” the spokesman told a foreign news agency.
“They unfortunately remained safe. We will continue to target Iranian installations and the Shia community everywhere,” he added.
Mast Gul, also known as Haroon Khan is a leader of the Hizbul Mujahideen who had risen to fame following a gun battle with Indian security forces and his dramatic escape from Charrar-i-Sharif in Indian-held Kashmir in 1995. He hails from Sadda in Kurram tribal region.
He was given a hero’s welcome by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) which showcased him at public meetings but later distanced itself from him after finding him to be violating the organisation’s discipline.
The 47-year-old militant survived an ambush near Peshawar in August 2003 and little was known about his whereabouts since then.
OTHER BOMBINGS:
Earlier in the day, at least three bombings hit various areas of Peshawar. However, no casualties were reported.
According to details, explosives were planted outside a house in Phase-VII of Hayatabad area of Peshawar. The second blast occurred in Afghan Colony while the third in Shahbaz Town.
Meanwhile, three rockets were fired on a security forces’ camp in Miranshah area of North Waziristan Agency.
According to sources, the camp came under attack when three rockets targeted the camp from unknown direction late on Sunday night. Fortunately, no loss of life occurred in the attack.
A boy was killed when an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded in a field in Badhbher area of Peshawar.
An army major and three soldiers were injured when their vehicle was targeted with an IED in Shagai area of Khyber Agency.
