Target missed: Suicide blast in Qayyumabad damages Rangers’ vehicle
Two passers-by suffer minor injuries.
The suicide blast damaged the front and the left window of Brigadier Basit’s car. PHOTO: ATHAR KHAN/ EXPRESS
KARACHI:
A suicide bomber targeted a vehicle of a Pakistan Rangers official on Friday morning in Qayyumabad.
The vehicle was damaged in the attack but the official and his guards remained safe. Two passers-by, however, suffered minor injuries.
According to the police, Ghazi Rangers sector commander Brigadier Basit was on his way to work on Creek Road in Qayyumabad around 9:30am when the suicide bomber detonated the explosives. Korangi SP Usman Bajwa told The Express Tribune that the police have found the head and other parts of the body of the alleged attacker and sent them for a DNA test.
A spokesperson for the Rangers said that it was a suicide attack. “With the blessings of God Almighty, all Rangers personnel remained unhurt in the attack. These kind of cowardly attempts will further strengthen our resolve to fight terrorism in all its manifestations.”
Later, the police and Rangers cordoned off the road as rescue teams reached the spot. The explosion damaged the front and the left window of the car. The road was reopened for traffic around 1:30pm after the completion of initial investigations.
“We found the head from a stream along the road and it is intact,” said a bomb disposal squad expert. “We have also found the skin of one of the attacker’s fingers that we have sent for examination to see if it can be used to obtain fingerprints.”
They have also found both the legs of the alleged attacker who was wearing socks and a khaki-coloured shalwar kameez. The alleged attacker is believed to be around 24 years old, he added.
The official said that five to six kilogrammes of explosives were used in the suicide jacket. The bomber also had a RJ-69 hand grenade in his pocket, which blew up after the blast. The grenade carried around 3,600 small steel balls, some of which have been found from the spot. “Three different sizes of ball bearings were found from the spot.”
The official added that none of the ball bearings could get inside the car. “The attacker tried to go near the car but the driver took a turn as the attacker detonated the jacket,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2014.
A suicide bomber targeted a vehicle of a Pakistan Rangers official on Friday morning in Qayyumabad.
The vehicle was damaged in the attack but the official and his guards remained safe. Two passers-by, however, suffered minor injuries.
According to the police, Ghazi Rangers sector commander Brigadier Basit was on his way to work on Creek Road in Qayyumabad around 9:30am when the suicide bomber detonated the explosives. Korangi SP Usman Bajwa told The Express Tribune that the police have found the head and other parts of the body of the alleged attacker and sent them for a DNA test.
A spokesperson for the Rangers said that it was a suicide attack. “With the blessings of God Almighty, all Rangers personnel remained unhurt in the attack. These kind of cowardly attempts will further strengthen our resolve to fight terrorism in all its manifestations.”
Later, the police and Rangers cordoned off the road as rescue teams reached the spot. The explosion damaged the front and the left window of the car. The road was reopened for traffic around 1:30pm after the completion of initial investigations.
“We found the head from a stream along the road and it is intact,” said a bomb disposal squad expert. “We have also found the skin of one of the attacker’s fingers that we have sent for examination to see if it can be used to obtain fingerprints.”
They have also found both the legs of the alleged attacker who was wearing socks and a khaki-coloured shalwar kameez. The alleged attacker is believed to be around 24 years old, he added.
The official said that five to six kilogrammes of explosives were used in the suicide jacket. The bomber also had a RJ-69 hand grenade in his pocket, which blew up after the blast. The grenade carried around 3,600 small steel balls, some of which have been found from the spot. “Three different sizes of ball bearings were found from the spot.”
The official added that none of the ball bearings could get inside the car. “The attacker tried to go near the car but the driver took a turn as the attacker detonated the jacket,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2014.