Ambushed: Three blasts in city’s outskirts, no loss reported

PESHAWAR: Multiple roadside bomb blasts occurred in Secretary Pul on Saturday, adjacent to Shalober in Khyber Agency. Unidentified militants had planted three explosive devices in the area, one of which exploded around 8am on Saturday morning. After police and bomb disposal unit (BDU) members arrived at the site of the explosion, the second bomb went off at the site in the afternoon. When an armoured vehicle was sent to their rescue, it too was attacked by a roadside bomb. In all three attacks, however, no loss of life or material was reported due to preventive measures by police contingents. “The real target of these blasts was police and polio teams since a polio campaign was supposed to take place in the area on Saturday, but was called off on Friday night,” said a Sarband police official while talking to The Express Tribune. “We have been ordered not to rush to the site of the explosion when there is no loss of life as it is usually an ambush, so we took our time,” he maintained, adding the first blast was caused by a two kilogramme low-intensity device, while the explosives used in the second and third were at least seven kilogrammes each. Published in The Express Tribune, March 9th, 2014.