Taliban terror on Eid-e-Milad claims 9 lives in Peshawar

–Students and gatekeeper among those killed as three burqa-clad terrorists attack Agricultural Training Institute in Peshawar

–Police and army soldiers neutralise terrorists before they could explode their suicide vests

–DG ISPR says attackers were being handled from Afghanistan, urges Kabul to act against cross border attacks

PESHAWAR: At least nine people were killed and 37 injured after three terrorists dressed in burqas stormed the hostel of Peshawar’s Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) on Friday morning.

The attack was claimed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and the attackers were reportedly coordinating with their handlers based in Afghanistan.

Security forces hunted down and neutralised the terrorists in an operation launched soon after the attack was reported.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police chief said six students, the institute’s gatekeeper, and two civilians are among the dead. One police officer, two soldiers and a journalist are among the injured, he said.

The Agricultural Training Institute has been closed for an unspecified period and the hostels have been cleared of students.

MAJOR CRISIS AVERTED:

Director General ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor and KP Inspector General Salahuddin Mehsud both stated in separate press conferences that three terrorists had been involved in the attack and had been killed; with the IG adding that the identity of a fourth suspected attacker was being confirmed.

The DG ISPR also said the attackers were in contact with their handlers in Afghanistan throughout the assault; a statement echoed by the KP police chief.

Gen Ghafoor said that TTP’s claim proves that terrorists are using Afghanistan’s soil to conduct activities across the border.

While talking to a private media channel, the DG ISPR asserted that Afghanistan should take prompt measures to eliminate terrorists based in their country.

The KP chief minister, however, later revealed that one attacker had been injured during the security forces’ operation and was being interrogated. He also revealed that the attackers had arrived in Peshawar only the night before.

“One of the attackers was around 35 years old while the rest were under 25,” he added.

Bomb Disposal Squad chief Malik Shafqat said that the terrorists had been wearing suicide jackets packed with ball bearings. However, he said, the terrorists were all killed before they could detonate their vests. All bombs found on the premises were defused, he added.

Three suicide jackets and 20 grenades ─ all intact ─ were recovered from the killed militants’ possession, as well as weapons and ammunition.

According to a senior official, police had been informed that the hostel was not adequately secured even though it was among the more vulnerable areas in the city.

KP IG Mehsud, while briefing the media on the attack, said that Peshawar police, along with Elite Police, the Rapid Response Force and other police groups, took part in the operation along with army troops and Special Forces personnel.

“There were two hostels in the area,” he explained. “The terrorists were able to attack one hostel, whereas the other one was secured by security forces before they could reach it.”

“There were around 60 people in one hostel and 50-60 in the other,” he continued, adding that housing colonies are also located in the surrounding area.

“If the hostels and houses had not been evacuated in a timely manner, the number of casualties could have been in the hundreds,” he said.

Armoured Personal Carriers were used to carry students safely from within the university to outside the premises, the IG said.

“Three terrorists have been killed. One person’s identity is being verified… The fourth. They are checking it,” he said.

“The regional situation is such that foreign intelligence agencies and terrorists on the other side of the border are cooperating. The terrorists aim for soft targets or opt for isolated incidents in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and KP,” he said.

The police chief commended his force for taking swift and effective action and preventing a larger tragedy — a belief echoed by the army’s spokesman and the province’s political leadership.

EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS:

The attack began around 8.30am as three loud explosions were heard and firing broke out at the ATI hostel opposite the Agricultural Directorate after at least three burqa-clad suspects entered the building.

The area where the incident occurred is a hub for educational institutions in the city, including the University of Peshawar. The ATI hostel was officially closed today for Eid Miladun Nabi.

Ordinarily, there are around 400 students at the hostel, but because of the Eid-e-Milad holiday there were only 150 present, a university student who witnessed the attack said.

“Two terrorists entered and fired, and the students began running. Some were injured; others jumped out of the windows of the hostel,” he said.

Noor Wali, a 19-year-old student at the institute, described a terrifying ordeal that began when he was woken by gunshots.

“I rushed to the door and saw a fountain of blood pumping out of the shoulder of my roommate who was standing outside the room,” he told AFP.

He and another student rushed to his aid, and hid from the gunmen for almost an hour before they were rescued by security forces.

“The other student was pressing the wound with his hands to stop the blood and I had to put my hand on his mouth to stop him from screaming,” he said.

“We took shelter inside the bedroom and were begging the injured student not to make any sound as the terrorists might hear it and kill us.”

“There was firing everywhere,” another student said. “We were able to bring some women and children out with us. The warden’s family came out safely with us,” he added.

“I was asleep. When we heard the gunshots, we quickly shut our room’s door and made phone calls to find out what was happening. We were told that the people outside are terrorists and that we should keep our room’s door shut,” said Saleh, another student who was in the hostel at the time of the attack.

He added: “The terrorists shot at everyone who was roaming around and they were breaking doors down to attack students. Thankfully security personnel reached the hostel before those men came to our room — that is why we are alive.”