61 killed in Quetta terror attack
61 killed in Quetta terror attack
Haseeb ur Rehman
Balochistan

QUETTA: Over 60 police cadets were killed and 122 others injured, about a dozen of them in serious condition, in a suicide terrorist attack on the mud walled police training college local in a highly sensitive area of this provincial Capital. Most of the police cadets killed in the terror attack were unarmed and the officials failed to properly secure the entire premises located in a highly sensitive area of the provincial Capital.

QUETTA: Over 60 police cadets were killed and 122 others injured, about a dozen of them in serious condition, in a suicide terrorist attack on the mud walled police training college local in a highly sensitive area of this provincial Capital. Most of the police cadets killed in the terror attack were unarmed and the officials failed to properly secure the entire premises located in a highly sensitive area of the provincial Capital.

The premises where more than 700 cadets were housed was least protected and the heavily armed terrorists early barged into it killing as many cadets as they could.

They gunned down the lone sentry on the watch tower and faced no difficulty in entering into the premises to initiate their killing spree targeting police cadets.

One Army Commando and a FC personnel were also killed reportedly in the gun battle with the terrorists.

The IS created confusion after making claims and with the release of picture of the three terrorists to media when the Government spokesmen claimed that it was Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, a militant outfit involved in Quetta carnage on August 8 last. The media people received two parallel claims on the incident which left 61 people dead and 122 injured.

The top officials told media that they had intercepted the communication between the terrorists and their handlers in Afghanistan confirming that the terrorist operation was controlled from across the border.

The most prestigious police college is located in the highly sensitive part of this provincial Capital where the security forces are involved in security operation day and night and without a pause and still it was least guarded or unguarded.

Saryab is sarcastically called as Gaza Strip of Balochistan where security operations are more frequent comparing other parts of Balochistan.

It is believed that most of the killing was reported at a result of indiscriminate firing and also using incendiary bomb prepared with deadly chemicals.

Official sources confirmed that the cadets had no weapons and hardly the premises were guarded with properly armed guards. The lone security tower sentry was made the prime target killing him instantly when they entered the premises from two directions—including the main gate and also from behind the mud wall boundary of the prime police institution.

Security forces cleared the college after four hours of operation and almost 250 cadets had been got released by the security forces. Security sources say that out of the three militants two had blown up themselves while the third was shot dead.

According to the security sources three militants forced their entry into the hostel from the front gate and held hostage an unknown number of cadets. The personnel on duty tried to curb them from entering the hostel but lost their lives fighting with the terrorists. The assailants entered in the room where the undertrained and unarmed police personnel were living. They took the cadets hostage and started attacking them.

Soon after the attack first police commandos then Frontier Corps personnel and Army personnel rushed to the area and entered the college where two assailants blew themselves up. Meanwhile the third assailant was gunned down by the security forces.

Security forces cleared the college from terrorists after four hours of operation.

The deceased and injured were shifted to Civil Hospital Quetta, Bolan Medical College Teaching Hospital and CMH. Emergency had been declared at all the major hospitals and the entire medical staff, technicians and para-medical staff were summoned on emergency basis. Most of the injured were being treated at Civil Hospital; some of the wounded were shifted to the BMC Hospital.

The condition of about a dozen injured said to be critical that include the personnel of Frontier Corps and Army.

The deceased are mostly from Turbat, Panjgur, Chaman, Pishin, Naseerabad, Loralai and other districts of Balochistan. 34 police cadets killed in the terrorist attack belong to Mekran region only.

Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif reached Quetta from the special airplane along with DG ISI Rizwan Akhtar.

Army chief visited the training center and had been briefed about the incident

Chief Minister Balochistan announced three days mourns in Balochistan following the incident of police training center attack.

Meanwhile the funeral prayers of the martyred personnel were held at the Quetta Police line and Musa Ground. Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharief, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif, Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Sanaulah Zehri, DG ISI, DGI FC, Home Minister Balochistan Sarfaraz Bugti, Health Minister Rahmat Saleh Baloch,provincial Education minister Raheem Ziaratwal and large number of  civilian and military leaders attended the funeral prayer.

The deceased were identified as Nadir,Zubair,Shoaib Ismail,Mehmmood,Hamid Ali,Tariq,Firdos,Salar Ahmed ,Abdul Wahid,Ijaz,Amir mohammad.Ashfaq Ahmed Shaik Qadir,Chakir Ali,Asif,Mehboob,Mohammad Yousuf,Shah Khalid,Sharaf udin,Mohammad nor,Mukhtar Ahmed,Dilawar,Shahid Hussain,Tariq Ali,Mohammad Tayub,Naveed Ahmed,Abdul hakeem,Shahbaz Khan,Mehubulah ,Gulzar Ahmad,Tayub ulah,Mohammad ibbas,Imadad khan,Haidar Ali,Waseem, Yousuf,Shakeel,Ameen ulah,Asif murad,Amin,Shah udin,Nusrat,Majid Ali,Mohammad Naseem,Zaheer,Hayat,Abdul Jabar,Jasim Ali,Asif Hayat,Abrar Ahmed,Liqaut Ali,Sirtaj Ghani and Saleh udin.

Chief Minister Balochistan said there was intelligence reports that terrorists may hit Quetta city that is why the security alert was made before, adding that, “terrorists targeted the cadets which is situated in the outskirts of the city after not getting chance to attack the city centre.

Home Minister Balochistan Sarfaraz Bugti said during the attack 700 personnel were present in the police training college however due to the immediate action of security forces less causalities were reported or losses minimized.

IG FC Major General Sher Afghan said there is evidence that Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) affiliated militants were involved in the attack. “LeJ militants were getting instructions from Afghanistan,” he said, adding that further details can’t be shared as things stand. Home minister denied any security laps and pledged to take action against the responsible if any security laps were found.

Sher Afgun said they received the information of the attack at 11:10 pm .There were three terrorists present in the training center who were suicide attackers as one terrorist had already done a suicide whereas two terrorists were present in the hostal.One terrorist  was gunned down by the forces while the other one blew himself.

IG FC told that personnel of security forces were killed and injured from the suicide attack.

In the operation Commando battalion of Pak Army, FC and police participated.

Talking to the Express Tribune Sherjan Baloch resident of Turbat district said,” while he was sitting in the barrack and talking with his cousin on phone then suddenly heard the voice of firing. When we went outside to see what had happened we saw a huge blast which killed our six to seven fellow cadets.

We hid ourselves under the cot whereas the terrorists opened indiscriminate firing injuring many cadets, he added.

Another injured resident of Turbat Mohammad Sabar told Express Tribune that,” the incident occurred around eleven o clock in the night when we were up to sleep. Suddenly two persons came in and killed our two colleagues.

They opened indiscriminate firing and when their bullets got finished they started throwing hand grand grenade and later one of them blown himself up with the help of his suicide vest.

The firing continued till 3 am and after that the commandos of SSG came by Helicopter whereas in an exchange of firing two personnel of the forces were martyred he further added.

Meanwhile leaders from all over the world had strongly condemned the terror attack in Quetta in their separate messages to the President and Prime Minister of Pakistan and expressed their sympathies to the Government and people of Pakistan.