On the instructions of the Interior Ministry the Sindh government has formed a joint investigation team to probe the PNS Mehran attack. There is still confusion about the number of terrorists that attacked the naval base. Interior Minister Rehman Malik at a press conference along with Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah at the Chief Minister’s House rejected the law enforcement agencies’ claim that there were more than a dozen attackers. After the news about the attack broke out, Pakistan Navy Public Relations Director General Irfanul Haq was seen on almost every news channel saying that there are 12 to 15 terrorists, four or five of them killed, while others still fighting the law enforcers.
The interior minister also claimed that at least 17 foreigners including the American and Chinese were present at PNS Mehran at the time of the attack and they were shifted to other places. Interestingly, the law enforcement agencies and the US Embassy contradicted the claim and said that there was no American national present at the naval base. “Now that everyone is demanding an independent probe by senior law enforcement agencies’ personnel, the Sindh Home Department has formed a joint interrogation team to investigate the attack, sources told Pakistan Today..
“The investigation team includes officials of the military intelligence, ISI, police, Rangers, and CID. It has been authorised to conduct raids across the province,” they added. The team would investigate the terrorists’ links as well as the alleged security lapses by the Pakistan Navy personnel deputed at PNS Mehran. “The investigation report with initial findings would be presented to the Sindh government within 15 days,” the sources added.
APP ADDS: “An eight-member team has been formed to probe the attack, said Sindh IGP Fayyaz Leghari. “The investigation is under way and efforts are being made to arrest the perpetrators of the terrorist activity at the naval base,” he added. Adviser to Home Department Sharfuddin Memon told APP that the investigation team has been formed on the directives of the federal government to expedite the probe. “The Home Department will issue a notification in this regard on Monday,” he added.
