Suicide bomber’s body parts found

Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Peshawar Ijaz Khan on Friday said that the body parts and helmet of the suicide bomber have been found at the scene of the suicide hit.

He said that the bomber, after reaching the mosque, left his helmet outside which has been found along with the body parts of the attacker, including his skull and lower body.

“The skull of the attacker has matched with the man seen in the footage. The cross match has confirmed that the video footage is of the suicide bomber,” he said, adding that the family of the woman, who was killed in the attack, is also being interrogated.

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) police said on Thursday the suicide bomber, who blew himself up at the Peshawar Police Lines mosque on Monday, wore a police constable’s uniform, a helmet and mask. He rode a motorcycle to the blast site.

Moazzam Jah Ansari, the inspector general of the K-P police, told a press conference that the bomber had been identified as a member of a militant network, adding that the terrorist was not alone in the attack, rather a whole network was supporting him.

The development in the investigation came on the fourth day of the Police Lines blast. Ansari said that the attacker had been identified with the help of the CCTV footage. The bomber was captured on CCTV, while coming from the Khyber Road, he added.

“In 9 minutes, the bomber reached the Police Lines from Khyber Road. His motorcycle’s engine and chassis numbers were fake,” Ansari told reporters. “He had entered the police line as a police constable, wearing a helmet and mask on a motorcycle in the police uniform,” the IGP added.

The suspect was shown in CCTV images arriving at the gates on a motorcycle before walking through a security checkpoint and asking officers where the mosque was located. “Those on duty didn’t check him because he was in a police uniform... It was a security lapse,” Ansari said.

“The police guards at the main entrance thought he was a member of the force; they didn’t check him,” the K-P police chief told reporters. “I admit this was a security lapse. My men could not stop it. This is my fault,” he added. “No identity of the assailant was found at the site.”

Ansari said that there was “a complete network” behind the bomber. “He is not a lone ranger… We are zeroing in on the terrorist network behind the deadly attack. Information has been received about the group to which the attacker belonged. The culprits will be arrested soon,” he added.

At least 103 people, mostly policemen, attending afternoon prayers inside were martyred and 220 injured. The blast was so powerful that a wall collapsed and crushed the worshippers.

Ansari said that Bomb Disposal Unit (BDU) had clarified that 12 kilogrammes of explosives were used.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 4^th, 2023.