Malala attack: Blast near Kainat's home kills 1, injures 6 in Swat

Police say explosion caused by gas leakage, not a terrorism attempt.

SWAT:
One woman was killed and six others were injured on Tuesday in a blast apparently caused by gas leakage near the house of Malala’s wounded friend Kainat Riaz in Swat.

The explosion occurred early Tuesday morning in Mohammad Nazir’s house, destroying half of the house. Soon after the explosion, neighbours rushed to the spot and shifted the injured to Saidu Group of Hospital.

The deceased woman was identified as Wara Bibi who was a guest at the house, while the injured include four women and two children.

“The guardian of the house is working in Saudi Arabia and majority of the people living in the house are children and women. The blast occurred at six in the morning which destroyed 70% of the house,” a neighbour Fazal Hakim told The Express Tribune.


It was earlier speculated that a bomb was planted by militants near Kainat’s house in the Makan Bagha area of Mingora district, but according to District Police Officer Gul Afzal Khan, the explosion occurred due to gas leakage and was not a terrorism attempt.

A relative of the family Fazal Wahab told The Express Tribune that there has been frequent gas loadshedding in the area, and people burn fire wood as fuel to cook food. “We really don’t know whether the blast occurred due to some explosive devices or due to gas leakage.”

Following the incident, police and security forces reached the spot, cordoned off the area and launched an investigation into the matter.

Kainat just recently returned to school and despite trauma from the shooting, was very excited about it.

She was injured when Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) members shot Malala Yousufzai, a 15-year-old child activist, who is currently recovering in a UK hospital.

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