Head Constable Adeel Hussain martyred, 10 including four police personnel injured in Islamabad suicide attack
ISLAMABAD, Dec 23, (SABAH): At least one police cop was martyred, while 10 other persons including four police personnel and six civilians were injured on Friday in a suicide attack in the Federal Capital’s I-10 area, Deputy Inspector General Operations Sohail Zafar Chattha told the media. The condition of one injured police cop is critical.
The law enforcement agency has cordoned of the area after the explosion.
Sources part of the investigation team said that about 18 kilograms of explosives were used in the blast. They said that the vehicle was registered in Chakwal but has a number plate of Lahore.
The police said that a mobile phone has been discovered at the scene of the incident which has been seized.
Addressing the media at the blast site, DIG Islamabad Police Sohail Zafar Chattha said that members of the Eagle Squad stopped a suspicious taxi for checking when the suicide attacker detonated himself.
The DIG said that the attacker blew himself after he came back in his car. He added that a women and man were in the taxi when the explosion occurred.
“Police personnel saved Islamabad from a major disaster with courage and presence of mind,” said DIG Chattha. He added that four cops were injured in the attack.
Television footage showed the fiery wreckage of a vehicle with a large number of police personnel combing the scene. Shortly afterwards, the Islamabad Police declared a “red alert” in the city.
According to Sohail Zafar Chattha, the police spotted a “suspicious vehicle” with a man and a woman aboard at 10:15am in the area.
“When the police stopped the vehicle, the couple came out of the car. The long-haired man, while being checked by the officers, went inside the vehicle on some pretext and then detonated himself,” he said in a media briefing at the crime scene alongside Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon.
Meanwhile, Director of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Dr. Khalid Masood said that they have received 10 injured. He added that apart from the martyred cop, two other dead bodies had arrived at the hospital. The martyred cop was identified as Head Constable Adeel Hussain.
Meanwhile, the joint executive director of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), Dr. Iqbal Durrani, told media that two bodies and five injured policemen had been brought to the hospital.
Separately, in an interview with a private TV channel Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan confirmed that “two terrorists” were killed in the blast.
“The vehicle used in the blast was registered in Chakwal. The car entered Islamabad from Rawalpindi […] it was packed with explosives and headed for a high-value target in the capital,” he said.
Rana Sanaullah added that had the car reached its target, it would have caused heavy losses.
Earlier in a tweet, the Islamabad police identified the slain officer as Head Constable Adeel Hussain. It said that terrorists had been targeting police for some time to demoralise law enforcement personnel.
In another tweet, the police said that diversions had been placed for both sides of traffic at Service Road East of Sector I-10/4. It advised citizens to use Service Road West of Sector I-10/4 as an alternate and stay away from the blast site.
Immediately after the blast was reported, the Islamabad inspector-general issued orders for a “security red alert” across the city.
In a tweet, the police said strict action will be taken against vehicles with “non-specimen” number plates, adding that no one will be allowed to carry arms.
It also advised residents to carry documents of identification while traveling.
Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the blast and sought a report from authorities. “Due to the timely action of the law enforcement agencies, the nefarious plan of terrorists to shed the blood of innocent people has been foiled,” the premier said in a statement.
He ordered authorities to provide the best possible medical treatment to those injured in the blast. The premier also directed the Islamabad police chief to recognise the courage shown by law enforcers in confronting terrorists and award certificates of appreciation to those who showed “extraordinary bravery”.
“We will rid our country of all such elements who are the enemies of Pakistan and murderers of innocent people,” he vowed, adding that the nation will continue the war against terrorism.
The Prime Minister paid homage to the martyred Police Constable Adeel Hussain. The Prime Minister said the entire nation salutes their valiant police personnel, who sacrificed lives and stopped the terrorists. He said the nation will continue its fight against complete elimination of terrorism.
The Prime Minister also expressed sympathies with the injured and directed to provide best treatment facilities to them. He also directed the IG Police to confer awards on the police personnel for their extraordinary bravery.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari condemned the blast and expressed grief over the martyrdom of the policeman. In a statement issued after the blast, he paid tribute to the “brave men of Islamabad police”.
Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that Islamabad was secured from a “big disaster” today. “Adeel Hussain and the injured comrades who sacrifice their lives in the line of duty are heroes of the nation.“
She tweeted that Pakistan’s salvation and prosperity lay only in freedom from terrorism.
Meanwhile, PTI leader Asad Umar said the presence of a “suicide bomber” in Islamabad signified that the country was moving towards destruction at a rapid pace.
“Terrorism is already spreading rapidly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the economy and public order have been destroyed — in which direction are they leading the country in their greed for power?” he tweeted.
Condemning the blast, Awami National Party leader Asfandyar Ali Khan said the seriousness of the situation could be gauged from the fact that “terrorists have reached Islamabad”.
In a tweet, the ANP leader said rulers and law enforcers must take stock of the situation and adopt measures accordingly.
“Terrorists had been organising here [in Islamabad] for the last 3 years, and now even the capital is not safe,” he claimed, adding that the situation could get worse if the counter-terrorism measures planned after the APS attack were not implemented.
Khan called upon the government to take urgent steps for training and facilities of local police, saying “they are our frontline fighting force”.
Meanwhile Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan in a statement issued on Friday, confirmed that a policeman was martyred and two suspected terrorists were killed in a blast in the I-10 sector of the federal capital.
The minister, in a statement, said a man and a woman were in a vehicle which entered Islamabad from Rawalpindi on Friday morning. A team of the Eagle Squad stopped it for snap checking when the two suspects blew up the car which was laden with explosive material. He said the terrorists aimed at hitting some “high-value targets” in the capital city.
Rana Sanaullah said six people, including four policemen, were injured in the incident, adding that the injured personnel were out of danger and being treated at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).