Two soldiers, six cops martyred in Bajaur, Lakki Marwat attacks

RAWALPINDI/LAKKI MARWAT/ISLAMABAD: Two soldiers and six policemen, including an ASI, were martyred in two separate terrorist attacks in Bajaur District and Lakki Marwat on Wednesday.

In the first attack, two soldiers were martyred while a terrorist was killed in an exchange of fire which took place in Bajaur District, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Wednesday. The fire exchange took place between security forces and terrorists in general area Hilal Khel, Bajaur District, on Tuesday night.

During an intense exchange of fire, one terrorist got killed and weapon and ammunition were also recovered from him. He remained actively involved in terrorist activities against security forces.

However, during the intense exchange of fire, Naik Taj Muhammad (age 33 years, resident of Kohat) and Lance Naik Imtiaz Khan (age 30 years, resident of Malakand) having fought gallantly, embraced Shahadat.

Sanitisation of the area is being carried out to eliminate any terrorists found in the area. In another terrorist attack, six policemen, including an assistant sub-inspector (ASI), were martyred when terrorists opened fire on them near Wanda Shahabkhel in Lakki Marwat on Wednesday, officials said. They said that a police party was going to a weekly cattle market to perform security duty when the terrorists opened fire on them.

As a result, ASI Ilm Din, lower head constable (LHC) Pervez Khan and constables Ali Usman, Dil Jan, Ahmad Nawaz and Mehmood embraced martyrdom. The officials said that the attackers also took away weapons and bullet-proof jackets of the martyred cops with them. A large contingent of police, led by District Police Officer Ziauddin Ahmed, reached the area and launched a search operation.

“The police have seized the motorcycles of attackers and also recovered the bullet-proof jackets they had snatched from the cops,” said an official.

The funeral prayers for the martyred cops were offered at the Police Lines in Tajazai. Inspector General of Police Moazzam Jah Ansari, Bannu Regional Police Officer Syed Ashfaq Anwar, Deputy Commissioner Fazal Akbar, DPO Ziauddin Ahmed, army and civil officials and people from different walks of life attended the funeral prayers.

Later, the martyred cops were laid to rest at graveyards in their native villages with state honours. Meanwhile, in a statement, the banned armed group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack, adding that its attackers made it back to safe havens.

In a statement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office condemned the latest attack, calling the police a vanguard against terrorism. “Let us make no mistake. Terrorism continues to be one of Pakistan’s foremost problems. Our armed forces and police have valiantly fought the scourge,” he tweeted.