Terror bid foiled: Rocket launcher defused in Lakki Marwat

61 RPGs, 63 fuses were found

LAKKI MARWAT: Police foiled a terror bid by defusing live rockets with fuses attached in hidden sacks near Wanda Arsla police check post on Saturday.

Insiders familiar with the matter told The Express Tribune a group of labourers found nine sacks filled with live rockets and fuses and immediately informed the police.

DPO Ali Akbar Shah assembled a team comprising police officers and officials of bomb disposal units and reached the site. They discovered the sacks contained 61 rocket propelled grenade (RPG), seven rocket launcher bombs and 63 fuses, which they believed would have been used to plant improvised explosive devices (IED).

BDU officials defused the live bombs. However, a wave of panic gripped the region as locals came to know about the incident.

According to Shah, police are investigating the matter.

In 2009, a vehicle was attacked during a volley ball match in Shah Hassankhel village in Lakki Marwat, killing over 100 people.

Later that year, another vehicle equipped with heavy explosives targeted Lakki Marwat police station. The police station was destroyed and nearby buildings were also damaged. The explosion also caused 17 police officers to lose their lives. Two DSPs, Javed Iqbal and Ismatullah Khattak, were also killed in terrorist activities.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 3^rd, 2016.