Facilitator left bomber near Pir Zakori flyover

A new video of the suicide bomber who blew himself up in the Peshawar Police Lines mosque has emerged showing that the suicide attacker separated from his handler and facilitator on Ring Road.

Official sources told The Express Tribune that a new video has been obtained by the investigators which showed that the suicide bomber himself rode the motorbike from Pir Zakari Flyover to Police Lines.

“The facilitator who could be seen in the footage on Ring Road, somewhere left him and on GT Road he (the bomber) could be seen riding the bike slowly towards the red zone alone,” said an official, adding that he was driving very slow and carefully till he entered the red zone and finally reached the Police Lines.

“He was clad in a shawl and was in police uniform so naturally he invited very little attention. No one stopped or checked him,” he said, adding that the handler disappeared from the Ring Road.

Police earlier claimed that the group behind the attack had been identified.

Earlier, Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Peshawar, Ijaz Khan, said that the body parts and helmet of the suicide bomber had been found from the site of the attack.

He said that the suicide 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 limb.

“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 mosque on Monday, wore a police constable’s uniform as well as a helmet and mask.

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 assault. Rather, a whole network was supporting him.

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,” the top cop told reporters. “He had entered the police lines as a police constable, wearing a helmet and mask on a motorcycle in police uniform,” the IGP added.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2023.