At least one of the two prisoners involved in the Nanga Parbat attack that killed 10 foreign tourists was shot dead, while the other was injured as police foiled an attempted jailbreak in Gilgit-Balistan (G-B) early on Friday.
On June 23, 2013, gunmen dressed as paramilitary forces stormed into the Nanga Parbat base camp, killing Chinese and Ukrainian climbers in an unprecedented attack in the Himalaya mountains of G-B region.
Home Secretary Sibtain Ahmed confirmed that the person killed was one of the assailants who had stormed the camp. Two other inmates – one of them also believed to be involved in the Nanga Parbat attack – however, managed to escape from District jail, Gilgit, where the incident occurred at 2.45am.
The inspector general (IG) prisons was also suspended on chief secretary’s orders over the jailbreak that was coordinated and assisted by men from outside the jail. However officials rejected this assertion.
The IG jails had suspended four jail officials including a superintendent soon after the incident. The area was soon cordoned off by police and a search operation was started in the area.
A police official requesting anonymity said the deceased inmate was on death row as an anti-terrorism court had convicted him. The case was to be tried in a military court.