Act of revenge: Ansarul Mujahideen claims responsibility for Wana blast

Says attack to avenge Haqqani network commander killing by US drone.

DI KHAN:

The outlawed Ansarul Mujahideen group has claimed responsibility for the suicide attack on a convoy in Wana that killed two security officials on Friday.

The group’s spokesperson Abu Bassir said the attack was carried out to avenge the death of Haqqani network commander Sangin Zadran, who was killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan.

Friday’s suicide blast killed two security officials and injured seven others, including three civilians.

A security official had told The Express Tribune that the incident took place on the bypass road of Wana Rustom Bazaar, when an explosive-laden vehicle rammed into the convoy of security forces.

The injured were rushed to Scouts Hospital in the scout’s camp in Wana.

Officials said that the convoy was on its way to the camp from Kani Guram, when the blast took place.

Azmat Khan, a local resident of nearby Wacha Khura area told The Express Tribune that the blast could even be heard in remote areas of Wana.

“The huge blast rattled windows and doors of my house and there was a lot of smoke,” he said.

The airport, the agency headquarters hospital, and other government buildings are located near the site where the suicide attack occurred.

Security forces cordoned off the area soon after the attack, but no arrests were reported, according to a security official.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2013.