PESHAWAR: In the wake of two violent attacks claiming lives of at least three including two workers of the polio monitoring team and a personnel of security forces, a massive search operation was launched in Tehsil Saafi’s Qandaro area of Mohmand Agency against the suspected terrorists on Sunday.
According to an official statement, a joint operation has been launched by Frontier Corps (FC) and Khasadar Force under supervision of the political administration of Mohmand Agency.
It is aimed at nabbing terrorists and their accomplices involved in the terror attacks. In the first attack, the miscreants opened fire at a vehicle of the anti-polio campaign workers, killing two volunteers and abducting three others.
Two persons of the team are still missing. Whereas in the second violent act, the armed assailants had martyred one FC soldier while another injured as they attacked the security forces’ vehicle.
Both the violent acts occurred in the same Qandaro area of Mohmand Agency and soon after the incidents, security forces’ personnel embarked on a massive search operation in the area. The search operation is still ongoing, but so far, there have been no further details provided to media by the political administration and security forces.
An official at Mohmand Agency on Sunday morning informed that all three persons who were abducted by militants on late Saturday evening had successfully escaped and returned safely. However, two persons of the polio monitoring team are still missing.
One of the killed volunteers of the polio monitoring team belonged to Bajaur Agency.
According to officials, the polio vaccination campaign was conducted in Mohmand Agency from March 12 to March 15. It was added that instead of the targeted 91276 children, 94551 were vaccinated.
The official further said that in the second attack, the vehicle of security forces was damaged, however, all others on board remained safe luckily. They said that the political administration has started a probe into the matter to know the motive of the attacks.
Tribal sources informed that a curfew-like situation has spread across the Tehsil Saafi of Mohmand Agency, Bajaur Agency and Pak Afghan border.