PESHAWAR: Eleven people were martyred and nine injured after terrorists attacked the student hostel inside the Directorate of Agriculture Extension on University Road, Peshawar early Friday morning.
The security forces later managed to kill all the terrorists after launching an operation.
SSP Operations Sajjad Khan told Media that five attackers wearing suicide jackets reached the compound in a rickshaw.
They were said to be wearing burqas in the rickshaw so as to avoid detection.
The police official said the attackers’ first target was the security guard of the premises, following which they made their way inside towards the students’ hostel.
“They could have wreaked havoc but the police and army successfully neutralised the threat,” he said further.
The police and army immediately reached the site and launched an operation to clear the area and neutralise the terrorists.
Aerial surveillance of the operation was carried out by the army aviation division whereas armoured vehicles of security forces were also on site.
Peshawar Capital City Police Officer Tahir Khan and SSP Operations Sajjad Khan were leading the operation.
Intermittent gunfire and blasts could be heard from inside the premises throughout the operation.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa IG Salahuddin Khan Mehsud said fortunately not many students were present due to the long weekend, adding that police APCs evacuated around a dozen students from the hostel.
“Special units of the Pakistan Army were taking part in the operation [alongside police],” he said further.
A clearance and sweeping operation is now under way.
University Road, the major artery of the city, was closed down for traffic.
The injured were shifted to Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH), located next to the directorate.
An emergency was declared in the hospital. The hospital’s spokesperson, Dr Saud, initially said a total of 11 injured were brought to the hospital.
