Timely action: Two homemade bombs defused in Shabqadar

"Each canister contained five kgs of explosives and two kgs of ball bearings," said Khan.

SHABQADAR:

A terror bid was foiled on Saturday morning when the bomb disposal squad (BDS) successfully defused two explosive devices collectively weighing 14 kilogrammes (kg) in Saro Kallay, Shabqadar.

Gul Shed Khan of Saro Kallay police station said they received a report about two suspicious tin canisters dumped in a field belonging to Shah Wazir in Said Wali Colony. He added they rushed to the spot, cordoned off the area and called in the BDS which successfully defused the devices.



“Each canister contained five kgs of explosives and two kgs of ball bearings. If the homemade bombs would have detonated, they would have caused a lot of destruction,” maintained Khan. “We launched a search operation in the vicinity, but no suspects were found,” he said, adding routine searches were usually conducted because of the area’s sensitivity.

The area remained a hub of militancy till 2008 when the army carried out an operation and cleared it. Khan informed police also defused a homemade pressure cooker bomb on August 12 in Shabqadar after receiving intelligence information.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2013.