Shafaqna Pakistan: At least nine police personnel, including two station house officers (SHOs), were martyred on Tuesday in a terrorist attack in the Kach Mangi Phase III area of Ziarat district, Balochistan, officials said.
According to Ziarat Superintendent of Police Abdul Qadoos Dehwar, the attackers targeted police officers deployed on duty in the area.
Following the assault, security forces, police and other law enforcement agencies launched a joint clearance operation, during which 15 militants were killed.
Officials said the attackers were affiliated with Fitna al-Khawarij, the term used by the state to refer to militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The martyred personnel included SHO Mangi Muhammad Hussain, SHO Kawas Sohbat Khan, Anti-Terrorist Force (ATF) in-charge Head Constable Saifullah, and several other police officers.
Police and the terrorists exchanged heavy gunfire for several hours after the attack.
The bodies of the deceased have been shifted to the District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital in Ziarat for legal formalities and post-mortem examinations.
SP Dehwar said the terrorists abducted several residents along with police personnel after the attack, adding that five of the abducted civilians later managed to escape.
Balochistan Chief Minister’s Adviser Shahid Rind said security forces, police and other law enforcement agencies had completed a joint clearance operation against the terrorists in Ziarat, during which 15 terrorists were killed.
Rind said the terrorists had paid a heavy price for attempting to undermine peace in Balochistan and that the state was responding to terrorism with full force.
He said there would be no safe havens for terrorists in Balochistan and that every attack would be met with a strong and decisive response, while intelligence-based operations (IBOs) would continue more effectively.
He added that those challenging the writ of the state would be brought to justice and that there would be no compromise on peace, stability and the protection of the people of Balochistan.
According to Rind, the nine police personnel martyred in the attack included SHO Mangi, SHO Kawas, Anti-Terrorist Force (ATF) in-charge Head Constable Saifullah and other police personnel.
He added that Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Ghulam Sarwar and eight police personnel safely reached Kach police station after travelling through difficult mountainous terrain, while Constable Rizwan was also rescued safely.
Meanwhile, residents of Ziarat staged a protest against the incident by blocking the national highway at Ziarat Cross to all traffic, disrupting movement and causing long queues of vehicles.
Authorities said search and IBOs were continuing in the area and that action against facilitators of the terrorists had also been intensified.
Earlier on Monday, protesters continued to block Quetta’s Airport Road outside BA Mall after a deadly armed clash in the Hanna Urak area left four men dead and several others injured, demanding the immediate arrest of those responsible and stronger security measures.
The demonstrators placed the body of the deceased on the road and staged a sit-in, which is still going on, disrupting traffic on one of the city’s busiest routes. They insisted they would continue their protest until authorities took concrete action against the attackers.
Source: Express Tribune
