Attack on pilgrims: PM Nawaz orders operation against Taftan attackers

Majority of victims belonged to Kohat.

QUETTA:

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday asked the Frontier Corps’ Inspector General to personally lead the operation against terrorists, following the attack on Sunday on a group of pilgrims in Taftan, saying the task is a big challenge for law enforcement agencies in Balochistan.

Chief Minister Balochistan Dr Abdul Malik Baloch has vowed that the government will take every possible step to protect the life and property of residents of the province. “Arrangements should be made for the transport of the bodies of pilgrims who were killed in Taftan and better treatment should be provided to those injured in the attack,” he said while chairing a high-level meeting on law and order here on Monday.

Provincial Interior Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, Chief Secretary Babar Yaqoub Fateh Muhammad, IG FC, IG police, provincial home secretary and commissioner Quetta division were present at the meeting with the CM. The chief minister was briefed on the attack that claimed 24 lives and left several other pilgrims seriously wounded.

Members of the meeting reviewed reasons for pilgrims choosing not to travel by air, despite the provision of subsidised flights for pilgrims to Iran from Quetta and other cities in the country. “Immediate steps should be taken for the early arrest of those involved in the brazen attack,” the chief minister said.

The suicide bombing on the pilgrims in Taftan, the bordering town of Pakistan and Iran, left as many as 24 dead while 25 others, including women and children, were seriously injured. The injured were shifted to CMH Quetta.

Speaking with The Express Tribune, Home Secretary Balochistan Akbar Hussain Durrani said 21 of the deceased pilgrims were from Kohat while 3 were from Quetta. The remains of those from Kohat have been dispatched to their hometowns, he said. The home secretary said there were a total of four suicide bombers who attacked the pilgrims’ hotels, one of whom was shot dead by Levies personnel.

Earlier in the day, the home minister and home secretary addressed a joint press conference. “The attackers encountered the security personnel at the hotel’s gate and killed them in an exchange of fire before they detonated their suicide vests,” said Home Minister Sarfaraz Bugti. He ruled out any security lapses, saying timely action by the security forces prevented further casualties. Hospital sources said that 10 women and 14 men lost their lives in the attack.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2014.