TANK: Seven police personnel, including the station house officer (SHO) and a passerby were martyred on Monday in a remote-controlled bomb blast targeting an armored police vehicle of Gomal Bazaar Police Station in the Tank district.
According to Tank District Police Officer (DPO) Shabbir Hussain Shah, the armored vehicle had departed from Gomal Bazaar Police Station and was heading towards Tank when it came under attack about three kilometres from the police station in the Wali Kot area.
The remote-controlled explosive device caused the armored vehicle to overturn, resulting in severe damage. Six police personnel travelling in the vehicle were martyred on the spot, while a passerby also lost his life in the blast.
The martyred police personnel were identified as SHO of Gomal Bazaar Police Station, Ishaq Ahmed Khan, Additional SHO Sher Aslam, driver Abdul Majeed, and Elite Force personnel Arshad Ali, Shaukat Ali, Hazrat Ali and Ehsanullah. The identity of the deceased passerby could not be ascertained.
Following the incident, security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. The bodies were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital Tank for post-mortem examination. After funeral prayers were offered at the DPO Office compound, the bodies were handed over to the heirs. Residents said the law and order situation in Tank district has remained extremely poor over the past year.
