Attack on military convoy claims 20 lives, injures 30
The explosives were planted in cylinder of one of the vehicles of the convoy.
ISLAMABAD: (Dunya News) – A bomb attack on Frontier Corps convoy in Bannu on Sunday has claimed lives of at least 20 soldiers while seriously injuring 30. Those injured were rushed to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH). Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has claimed the responsibility.
The preliminary report of the attack suggests that the explosives were planted in the cylinder of a private vehicle that was hired for transporting the supplies. The report also says that six of the bodies are unidentifiable; therefore they will be identified through DNA test. Fifteen of the injured were of critical condition and therefore were flown to CMH Hospital Peshawar on emergency basis.
Reportedly, Frontier Corps personnel were present at the cantonment ready to go with the convoy to deliver supplies to Miran Shah as a matter of routine and suddenly one of the vehicles exploded. The intensity of the blast shook the whole city. According to sources, the vehicle was blown using a remote control that resulted in destruction of several vehicles and injuries of dozens of personnel present at the time. At least 40 vehicles were present at the time of explosion.
The security forces have cordoned off the whole area and a search operation in nearby areas is underway.
Meanwhile, Federal Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar has asked why precautionary measures weren’t taken while hiring private cars. The minister condemned the attack and expressed empathy with the families of slain soldiers. He further sought the report from the Inspector General Frontier Corps (IGFC).
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, President Mamnoon Hussain, former president Asif Ali Zardari, MQM chief Altaf Hussain, Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak, Jamaat Islami chief Syed Munnawar Hassan and Sunni Ittehad Council chief Hamid Raza have strongly condemned the attack.
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Shahidullah Shahid, while claiming the responsibility, said that the attacks on security forces will increase in the coming days.
Bannu has been the site of several attacks targeting security forces in the past.
Pakistani troops have been fighting for years against homegrown insurgents in the tribal belt, which the US considers the main hub of Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants plotting attacks on the West and in Afghanistan.
