SWAT: A day after an IED blast in Kabal Tehsil of Swat, the death toll has rose to eight as three more bodies were found at the explosion scene on Wednesday, the police officials confirmed.
Peace Committee leader Idrees Khan was targeted in the remote-controlled improvised explosive device (IED) blast planted at Bara Bandai area of Kabal Tehsil on Tuesday evening. The peace committee leader, two police personnel – Head Constable Rambail, a resident of Peshawar and Constable Tauheed, two passersby – Sanaullah, a resident of Bara Bandai and Umar Ali resident of village Fazil Banda were killed on the spot.
Later, three more bodies were found at the scene of the incident, who were identified as: Ibrahim Shah and his brother Afzal Shah, residents of Fazil Banda and Muslim Khan, a resident of Bara Bandai. The bodies were removed to their native areas where they laid to rest while Idrees khan was buried in his hometown Bara Bandi on Wednesday.
A case of the blast has been registered in the CTD police station Kabal in which “unknown accused” have been nominated.
Earlier, Swat DPO Zahid Marwat told the media that it was a remote-controlled bomb blast. He said five people including peace committee member Idrees Khan and two policemen were killed in the blast.
“Idrees Khan along with two police guards was returning from Kotakay area to his village Bara Bandai when a remote control bomb planted in a dirt track went off, leaving all those who were in the vehicle killed on the spot”, DPO Marwat said.
After the incident, the law enforcement agencies cordoned off the area and started search operations in the area.
According to the police, six to seven kilograms of explosives were used in the bomb blast.
civil society holds protest in Mingora
The civil society held a peaceful protest in Mingora to condemn the killing of a peace committee member in the blast. They demanded the government to take stock of the deteriorating situation and take measures for maintaining peace and order in Swat.
The protesters were carried placards with slogans such as “We want peace in Swat”. The protestors urged the government and the law enforcement agencies to take emergency measures to maintain durable peace in the area.
Eight of 10 abductees released
On the other hand, eight of the ten abducted employees working at the tower of an International Mobile Company in Chuprial area of Matta Tehsil were released by the “unidentified abductors,” a day after their “abduction” from the working site. Two employees, however, are still in the custody of the “unidentified armed men”
According to police sources, the armed men released eight persons on Wednesday including: Arsalan, Muhammad Asbar Malik, driver Abdul Hakeem and a labour Waqt Ali.
They have been taken to the police station by the Chuprial Police, the sources claimed and added that two employees – Engineer Yousaf Shah and Muhammad Khalid are “still missing.”
“The armed men have demanded Rs100 million as ransom for release of the employees, the officials confirmed.
