One killed, four injured in North Waziristan IED blast

Explosion occurred when repatriation of displaced persons was underway

PESHAWAR: At least one person was killed and four others were injured when an 'old' improvised explosive device (IED) went off in North Waziristan early Tuesday morning.

According to officials, the explosion occurred at a time when the repatriation of the displaced persons – after the army initiated the military operation Zarb-e-Azb in 2014 to counter terrorism in the region – was already underway in the area.



"The explosives were old and buried in the ground near Al Khalid Public School. The deceased and injured were all part of the returning population to the area,” an official told The Express Tribune.

The clearance operation in North Waziristan valley has been a bone of contention for authorities with a security official saying "it is one of the main causes of delay for the returning population."



“At one instance, we discovered a tunnel full of explosives in the area which was defused. The extent of which was so much that it caused an earthquake of magnitude 5," he added.

A majority of the areas of North Waziristan, however, have been cleared.

Approximately 2,296 families of the Darpakhel area are expected to be repatriated by September 19. Some 250 families are returning to the area on a daily basis, said the Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA).