Havoc in the playground: CM’s nephew killed in Mastung blast

Explosion took place after a football tournament.

QUETTA:

Two persons, including the nephew of Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Aslam Raisani, were killed and 39 others sustained injuries in an explosion followed by intense firing at a football stadium in Mastung area on Friday.

Eight personnel of the anti-terrorist force (ATF) and four policemen were amongst the injured.

Nawabzada Siraj Raisani, chief guest of the event, was the prime target of the attack according to security officials.

“The explosion happened after the prize distribution ceremony of All-Pakistan Football Tournament in Mastung,” said Noorul Haq Baloch, deputy commissioner of Mastung.

Siraj’s 14-year-old son, and chief minister’s nephew, Akmal Raisani sustained serious injuries in the attack and was rushed to Combined Military Hospital, Quetta for treatment where he succumbed to his injuries. The other person killed in the attack could not be identified.

“Akmal Raisani and his father were boarding the vehicle when the hand grenade exploded in close proximity to them,” said an official.

“Akmal sustained serious injuries while Siraj Raisani was unhurt,” the official added. The vehicle was gutted in the blast.

Since a bomb disposal squad was not available in the area to assess the damage following the blast, the intensity and power of the explosion could not be known immediately.

A state of emergency was imposed at all government-run hospitals in Quetta following the blast. “We received 15 injured persons who were later taken to Combined Military Hospital,” sources at district headquarters hospital said.

Five injured were shifted to Bolan Medical College Hospital, Quetta while another three were referred to provincial Sandeman Hospital.

Protesters blocked the RCD Highway at several places near Mastung, Kalat and Khuzdar in reaction to the blast.

Train track sabotaged

The rail service between Quetta and rest of the country came to a halt again after an explosion destroyed a 30-foot-long section of the railway tracks.

The explosion also derailed a Quetta-bound passenger train, Bolan Mail, on Friday near Dera Allahyar. No one was reported hurt in the incident.

Outlawed Baloch Republican Army (BRA) claimed responsibility for the attack.

A spokesperson for BRA who identified himself as Sarbaz Baloch said: “The BRA will target economic installations and security forces in the future as well.”

An official of the Pakistan Railways said that repair work had begun.

“The rail service is likely to be restored by late Friday,” he said. The passengers were transported to Dera Murad Jamali after the incident.





Published in The Express Tribune, July 30^th, 2011.