‘Reprisal’ attack: Blast kills 13 police commandos

Booby-trapped van explodes near the exit of the training centre in Karachi; TTP claims responsibility.

KARACHI:

At 7:48 am, a powerful blast killed at least 13 young police commandos and injured 58 others on Thursday near the Razzaqabad Police Training Centre on the outskirts of Karachi.

Some 70 Special Security Unit (SSU) commandos were travelling in a police bus when the explosion took place.

Claiming responsibility for the “revenge” attack, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan said the suicide bombing was in retaliation for the killing of their militants by law-enforcement agencies in Karachi, Swabi and Peshawar.

“The blast occurred when bus made a U-turn near the exit of the training centre,” said Israr, one of the injured commandos. “They (the militants) are cowards as they caught us off guard. We will not let them get away with this.”



The bus was on its way to the Police Headquarters, Hassan Square, and from there the commandos had to be dispatched for security duties at Bilawal House, Governor House and the Sindh High Court. “The bus left the training centre as per routine,” SSU chief Maqsood Ahmed told The Express Tribune. “It is not unusual for us to lose our jawans. We have been constantly targeted in these attacks. But the morale of our jawans is very high.”

The blast was heard within a radius of two kilometres. It also hit and damaged three more vehicles and smashed the windowpanes of nearby buildings.

Soon after the incident, a contingent of police and Rangers cordoned off the site. Ambulances also reached the area, but rescue workers faced many difficulties. “It was very hard for us to save the victims as the bus was badly damaged,” said rescue worker Mohammad Asif. “We had to cut off parts of a bus to reach the police commandos stuck inside.”

Senior investigation officials initially thought the bombing was a suicide attack but bomb disposal experts refuted the claim in their final report. They said the bombing was carried out by a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED).

“It was the uni-directional bomb weighing around 25 kilogrammes that severely damaged the left side of the police van. It was detonated through a remote controlled-device,” a bomb disposal expert explained. “Similar devices have been used in the attacks targeting Pakistan Navy buses, SP Chaudhry Aslam and several bombings hitting the police and Rangers in Karachi.”

Investigators have also obtained the CCTV footage from the cameras installed at the training centre. “One man parked a high-roof van at around 7:07am near the U-turn. The driver walked out of his van and waited for the police bus that was 50 metres away. He detonated the bomb as soon as the police van came closer to the high-roof,” said District Malir SSP Rao Anwar, describing the footage he saw.

“Nothing remains to be investigated in this case. The two major things are already clear: who did it and how the attack was conducted,” he said. “We only have to arrest them now,” he added with a sigh.

Investigators have also found the registration number of the vehicle used in the bombing but did not find anything important as the licence plates were fake. Two suspects were also detained from a makeshift hut near the blast site, as the police suspected that the culprits used the shack to carry out their swift operation.

However, no case has been registered as yet.

Condemnations

Soon after the attack, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who is currently on his official visit to Turkey, phoned Sindh Chief Minister from Ankara and condemned the incident. He assured the chief minister of the federal government’s support and that action against criminals in Karachi will continue.

Condemning the incident himself, Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah said the attack on policemen in Razzaqabad was in reprisal for the ongoing operation in Karachi. Speaking to the media after the attack, he said, “This cowardly attack will not deter us from taking action against criminals in Karachi.” Many groups who are working as mafias in Karachi are trying to sabotage the operation and take revenge for their arrested accomplices, he added.

Shah announced Rs2 million for each policeman who lost his life in the attack.


Published in The Express Tribune, February 14^th, 2014.