Rocket Fire: 42 NATO tankers, containers torched in Quetta
Armed men on motorcycles fire two rockets at tankers, no casualties reported yet.
QUETTA:
At least 42 Nato oil tankers and containers were torched after armed men fired two rockets at them in the Kharotabad area of Quetta on Thursday.
As many as 32 oil tankers and 10 containers, carrying fuel and military hardware for Nato forces in Afghanistan, were parked in a terminal on the Airport Road when a group of armed men fired two rockets, followed by intense firing.
Initially, a few oil tankers caught fire that eventually engulfed nearby oil tankers and containers too.
“At least 32 oil tankers and 10 containers carrying necessary supply for Nato forces were destroyed in the attack,” CCPO Mehbob Ehsan told The Express Tribune.
Fire tenders rushed to the spot soon after the incident and tried to extinguish the blaze. However, the fire could not be brought under control till this report was filed.
According to reports, the armed men managed to flee from the scene after carrying out the attack.
No casualties have been reported yet.
So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack but the Taliban have taken responsibility for carrying out similar attacks in the past to disrupt supplies for more than 130,000 US-led international troops fighting in Afghanistan.
According to official sources, as many as 119 oil tankers and 111 containers carrying fuel and military hardware for Nato forces are parked in different terminals of Quetta for the past 13 days since Pakistan suspended the supply.
(Read: Factbox: NATO supply routes into Afghanistan – some facts)
Published in The Express Tribune, December 9th, 2011.
At least 42 Nato oil tankers and containers were torched after armed men fired two rockets at them in the Kharotabad area of Quetta on Thursday.
As many as 32 oil tankers and 10 containers, carrying fuel and military hardware for Nato forces in Afghanistan, were parked in a terminal on the Airport Road when a group of armed men fired two rockets, followed by intense firing.
Initially, a few oil tankers caught fire that eventually engulfed nearby oil tankers and containers too.
“At least 32 oil tankers and 10 containers carrying necessary supply for Nato forces were destroyed in the attack,” CCPO Mehbob Ehsan told The Express Tribune.
Fire tenders rushed to the spot soon after the incident and tried to extinguish the blaze. However, the fire could not be brought under control till this report was filed.
According to reports, the armed men managed to flee from the scene after carrying out the attack.
No casualties have been reported yet.
So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack but the Taliban have taken responsibility for carrying out similar attacks in the past to disrupt supplies for more than 130,000 US-led international troops fighting in Afghanistan.
According to official sources, as many as 119 oil tankers and 111 containers carrying fuel and military hardware for Nato forces are parked in different terminals of Quetta for the past 13 days since Pakistan suspended the supply.
(Read: Factbox: NATO supply routes into Afghanistan – some facts)
Published in The Express Tribune, December 9th, 2011.