Mastung bomber identified, Peshawar blast suspect arrested

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Interior was informed on Thursday that the suicide bomber behind the Mastung attack was identified as Hafiz Nawaz, a resident of Abbottabad.

The Balochistan Inspector General Mohsin Hassan Butt told the committee that the suicide bomber had travelled from Abbottabad to Sindh where he linked up with a banned organisation.

“The suicide bomber was part of Daesh and had been affiliated with the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi as well,” he added.

“The facilitators of the attack have also been detected,” Butt informed senators.

He further said that ‘Daesh had established a strong presence in Afghanistan and was carrying out terrorist attacks in Balochistan’.

According to the official, Mufti Haider and Hafiz Naeem were local commanders of Daesh and efforts are underway for their arrests.

In the deadliest attack on election campaigning, a suicide bomber killed more than 131 people and injured 150 others at an election rally in Balochistan’s Mastung on July 13, in the second election-related attack on the same day. Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) candidate Siraj Raisani was also among the dead victims.

Meanwhile, Additional IG Khyber Pakhtunkhwa informed the committee that the prime suspect behind the Peshawar blast has been arrested that killed Awami National Party (ANP) leader Haroon Bilour.

The additional IG also stated that the suspect hailed from Hangu.

On July 10, Haroon Bilour was among the 22 dead when a suicide bomber blew himself up at an ANP political event held in Peshawar, an attack whose responsibility was instantly claimed by the TTP.