Five foreign nationals escape unhurt in Karachi suicide attack

KARACHI: All five foreign nationals who were travelling in a vehicle attacked by terrorists in Karachi’s Landhi area were safe and shifted to an undisclosed location, police officials told Geo News on Friday.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG), East, Azfar Mahesar said the attackers were on foot, as per preliminary investigation, adding the police recovered six hand grenades, an SMG, and three magazines from the militants.

“The attackers also had two bottles of petrol. All the items were in a bag with the attackers,” said the police official. According to the DIG, a vehicle and a motorcycle nearby were damaged in the blast after a terrorist blew himself up.

A police mobile was parked at a nearby petrol pump which reached the spot after hearing the explosion. The personnel of the Sharafi Goth police station also confronted the terrorists. He revealed the attack was carried out at 6:50 am on Friday.

The DIG further stated there was a company vehicle with security guards as well behind the targeted one carrying the employees. The terrorists opened fire on the van, while the security guards behind the van retaliated the attack, shooting dead one of them in the head.

“One terrorist was killed in firing by security guards, while the other terrorist approached the van and blew himself up,” he said. The police official said efforts will be made to identify the killed terrorist using his fingerprints.

He revealed that the police were already on alert after having received security threats regarding foreigners in the city. He added a security plan for China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and non-CPEC projects had been prepared.

Speaking to the media at the crime scene, Counter Terrorism Department in-charge Raja Umar Khattab told journalists that the suicide bombers were waiting nearby and attacked the vehicle when it slowed down due to a speed breaker.

Senior Superintended Police (SSP), Malir, Tariq Mastoi also confirmed that it was a suicide attack. As per initial reports shared by the police, the second terrorist killed in the encounter was also a suicide bomber. The law enforcement agency also shared that the foreign nationals were working in the export processing zone.

A security guard, who was with the foreign nationals and witnessed the incident, told Geo News that they had left Zamzama in two vehicles. He added a loud explosion was heard when they were passing through Landhi’s Mansehra Colony.

Earlier, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre’s (JPMC) administration told Geo News that three injured were brought to the medical facility, of whom two were critically injured. The two injured security guards and a passerby were identified as Noor Muhammad, Langar Khan and Salman Rafiq.

However, security guard Noor Muhammad, 45, succumbed to his injuries during treatment. He was placed on a ventilator after his condition deteriorated. Another injured Salman was also shifted to the ventilator, while the third one was receiving treatment at the hospital, the administration added.

The bodies of the suicide bombers had also been shifted to the hospital, the JPMC administration said. It also confirmed that no foreign national was injured in the attack.Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has sought a report of the Mansehra Colony blast from Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ghulam Nabi Memon.

The chief minister directed the police to obtain all the information about who the terrorists were and where they came from as well as probe about their facilitators.He maintained that anti-national elements wanted to disrupt peace and order in the country and lauded the police’s timely action following the attack.

Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori also condemned the suicide attack in Landhi, directing the Capital City Police Officer and IGP to present a report on the attack.“Terrorism will not be tolerated in the city under any circumstances,” the governor said and asked the law enforcement officials to trace the motives behind the incident and apprehend its masterminds.