157 seriously wounded; Victims include mostly policemen; PM, COAS air-dash to Peshawar, resolve to crush terrorists
Tariq Saeed Peshawar
Provincial metropolis Peshawar was bathed in the blood, though after relative pause, when a powerful suicide explosion ripping through a mosque in a “ highly secured” Police Lines Monday afternoon left 59 people dead and around 157 seriously injured.
A majority of those killed and wounded are the policemen with few officers. The death toll is feared to go higher as conditions of many injured in the city’s major hospital was stated to be as precarious.
The senior Police officials admitted there was a serious security lapse in the Monday incident. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan has reportedly owned the responsibility for the deadly blast.
“Those responsible for the deadly blast would be brought to book and would be made example,” Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said while reiterating the national resolve and unity to eliminate terrorism from the country during his visit to Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged people, especially followers of his Pakistan Muslim League-N ruling party, to donate blood to those injured in suicide attack.
“Reach Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, and contribute to saving precious human lives,” he tweeted.
According to reports a suicide bomber effectively managed to sneak through the tight security cordons in the Police Lines, Peshawar, that houses many headquarters including the Counter Terrorism Department, Frontier Reserve Police, Elite Force and telecommunications department, and blew himself up in the front row during the Zohr prayers creating havoc in the mosque. As the powerful blast blew up the sealing of the main hall of the mosque, scores of faithful were buried under tons of debris. According to Police authorities roughly 300 to 400 faithful were present in the mosque at the time of the blast.
The security personnel rushed to the site of the blast and kicked off rescue operation as scores of ambulances both private and Rescue 1122 started shifting the victims to the nearby Lady Reading Hospital that has been epically equipped during the last decade to deal with the mass casualties and traumas. Emergency was imposed in all the major hospitals of the town as appeals were made for blood donation.
The rescue activities continued for hours as the rescuers were busy retrieving the victims from the debris till long. Videos and pictures shared by social media users show horrific scenes as the injured drenched in blood were shifted to local hospitals for treatment after the blast.
“The suicide bomber was present in the front row during the Zohr prayer when he exploded himself leading to wide range destruction”. Officials with the Capital City Police Officer, Peshawar Ejaz Khan talking to media said it was too early to say anything as many policemen are still trapped under the rubble.
“We are currently focused on the rescue operation. We cannot say with surety but there is a smell of explosives inside the mosque,” said the CCPO. He added that headquarters of the Peshawar Police, Counter-Terrorism Department, Frontier Reserve Police, Elite Force and telecommunications department are also located near the blast site. Police said Sahibzada Noor Ul Amin, Imam of the mosque, was also martyred in the blast.
An eyewitness told the media that he was going to the mosque when the explosion took place. “It was indeed a powerful explosion and there was smoke everywhere after the blast,” he said adding that after gaining consciousness he saw the mosque’s roof collapse. “There were hundreds of people in the mosque when the incident took place. It was a suicide blast because the bomber was inside the mosque’s inner courtyard. The Zuhr prayers had just started when it happened. There were mostly policemen among the injured,” said the eyewitness.
President of the Civil Secretariat Association Peshawar Tassavur Iqbal, who regularly prays at the mosque, said that the Police Lines area’s security is always high and no one can enter without showing their identity and body search.
Police Lines Peshawar is the Cantt’s most sensitive area where a large number of law enforcement and FC personnel are present round the clock. “The offices of KP’s Counter Terrorism Department and other agencies are located there. Usually, 1,000 police personnel are present at the police headquarters”. A media person said adding that in order to go inside the area one has to stop at two police check posts. “The bomber was able to sneak inside after passing through checking three times”. He said
The Capital City Police Officer while talking to media, admitted there was certainly a serious security lapse. “When a terrorist can sneak through the highly secured Police Lines, there definitely is the security lapse and we will look into that,” CCPO Ejaz Khan said.
Commissioner Peshawar Riaz Mehsud told media, “We haven’t yet confirmed how many policemen are dead and wounded but I think 90 percent casualties are of police personnel because most of those offering prayers in the mosque were policemen.
The political leadership of the country including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, former Prime Minister Imran Khan, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, former president, Asif Ali Zardari, former NA speaker Asad Qaiser and others have strongly condemned the terror attack and vowed to give exemplary punishment to those involved in it.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif who air-dashed to Peshawar accompanied by Army Chief General Asim Munir, visited Lady Reading Hospital and inquired after the health of the victims of Peshawar Police Lines mosque blast. Defense minister Khawaja Asif, interior minister Rana Sanaullah and information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb were also present on this occasion.
On December 30, a meeting of the National Security Committee was headed by PM Shehbaz, which decided to turn up the heat on the militancy with relentless counter and preemptory measures to neutralise the threats present in the country in any form.
Participants of the NSC meeting unequivocally resolved that Pakistan’s national interests would not be compromised and no one would be allowed to undermine national security.
The meeting was attended by services chiefs, intelligence heads, and federal ministers.
The Federal Information Minister said that the prime minister summoned emergency meeting of top officials of all relevant departments after the tragic Peshawar incident. The Prime Minister also chaired the meeting regarding law and order situation in the province.
Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the Peshawar blast, reiterating the national resolve and unity to eliminate terrorism from the country. The prime minister said that the killing of Muslims while they worship, was in violation of Islamic teachings and that the attack on a mosque evidenced that the perpetrators had nothing to do with Islam.
He said the terrorists wanted to create panic by targeting those safeguarding the country and reiterated his resolve to eliminate such elements waging war against Pakistan. “The killers of innocent people will be made an example. The whole nation including the institutions was united against terrorism”. the premier said.
Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Haji Ghulam Ali and the Caretaker Chief Minister Mohammed Azam Khan have condemned the blast and termed it a brutal and heinous crime against humanity. They expressed deep sorrow over the loss of precious human lives in the incident and expressed sympathy with the bereaved families and prayed for the eternal peace of the departed souls and expressed well wishes for the early recovery of the injured ones.
The two assured that the government stood by the victims of the incident; they would not be left alone in these testing times. Muhammad Azam Khan termed the blast in Masjid an inhumane act and said that such incidents could not shatter the resolve of the government, the general public and the law enforcing agencies to fight the menace of terrorism. He maintained that the whole nation is united against terrorism; people of this province and law enforcing agencies have played front-line role in the war against terrorism.
He said that maintaining law and order and protecting its citizens has always been the top priority of any state or government; the caretaker set up in the province would also ensure all possible efforts to this effect.
The Governor and the CM paid rich tribute to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and said that our police have rendered matchless sacrifices in the war against terrorism and their sacrifices would be remembered for ever. Governor KP also visited the site of the blast at Police Lines and Lady Reading Hospital and inquired about the injured.
