BUNER:
Presidential award winning anti-Taliban tribal chief Saeed Ahmad Khan and his two guards were killed in a suicide attack in Buner district on Saturday.
Two passersby also died in the attack that took place near Buner Medical Centre in Dagar area, according to Jehanzeb Bangash, the district police officer (DPO)
“Saeed Ahmed, aka Fateh Khan, was targeted around 2pm while he was travelling to his fuel station,” Bangash told The Express Tribune.
The bomber, who was riding a motorcycle, detonated the explosives strapped to his body as soon as Saeed’s car drove past. Saeed, his guards and two passersby were killed on the spot, he added. Seven bystanders were injured in the suicide attack as well, the DPO further informed.
Police and security forces cordoned off the area soon after the incident and ferried the victims to the District Headquarters Hospital.
“Authorities declared a state of emergency at the hospital where a huge crowd gathered to mourn Saeed’s death,” Bangash told The Express Tribune.
The DPO identified Saeed’s deceased gunmen as Momin Khan and Sultan and the deceased passersby as Muhammad Sualeh and Sardar. Asghar Khan, Bibi Khouba, Mukamal Shah, Sabihullah, Khalida and Iqbal were among those injured in the attack, he added.
Saeed Ahmad was an important political figure and businessman in the region. He played a vital role in raising an anti-Taliban peace militia and collaborated with the government in keeping militants from Swat from infiltrating Buner in 2009. He had been a leader in the Awami National Party and recently switched to Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao’s Qaumi Watan Party.
Peace militia members have been frequently targeted by militants in the past.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 4th, 2012.
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may Allah grant this brave man a place in heaven.