LANDI KOTAL: Two activists of a banned militant group were killed and two others were injured in a clash with security forces in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency on Sunday.
Officials said that a convoy of security forces was on a routine patrol in the area when armed members of Lashkar-i-Islam attacked it. Two militants identified as Hassan and Mehmud were killed in retaliatory firing, they said.
Officials said that two attackers were also injured in the incident while the remaining managed to flee. The killed and injured militants were close aides of Qari Hidayat and Jalil, two local commanders of Lashkar-i-Islam.
Sources said that the attack was a reaction to air strikes on Lashkar-i-Islam base in Nala Malakdinkhel area on Friday night. Security officials claimed to have killed 10 militants in the air strike but local sources said that some members of Lashkar-i-Islam were injured in the strikes.
Meanwhile, headless body of an unidentified person was found in Speena Khawra area of Jamrud tehsil on Sunday.
Local people informed Khasadar Force about the body, which was buried when no one recognised the deceased.
In Dir Lower, a policeman was killed in a roadside blast in Warsak Kandaro area on Sunday morning.
Officials said that a van of Asbanr police station was on routine patrolling in the area when it was targeted by an improvised explosive device, planted on the roadside. They said that a constable identified as Islam Gul was killed in the blast.
The killed policeman was laid to rest at his ancestral graveyard in Sia Adenzai with full official honour. DPO Ghulam Habib, Col Arshad and other officials were present on the occasion.
Meanwhile, a man was killed and his father was injured when unidentified persons opened firing on them in Mian Cham Samar Bagh on Sunday.
Local people said that Shahenshah and his father Faiz Ali Khan were working in their fields when the attackers opened firing on them. Shahenshah was killed on the spot while Faiz Ali suffered critical injuries. The injured was referred to Peshawar in precarious condition. The motive behind the incident could not be ascertained.
In Peshawar, an elder of Badhber received minor injuries when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle at Faqirabad Chowk on Sunday.
An official of Badhber police station said that Hakeem Khan was going from his village Mashokhel to Peshawar city when a remote-controlled bomb exploded near his vehicle at Faqirabad Chowk. The vehicle was damaged badly and Hakeem Khan sustained minor injuries.
Meanwhile, at least 88 suspects including some foreigners were arrested during a search operation in Hayatabad here on Sunday.
An official said that hundreds of policemen and policewomen took part in the search operation conducted in Phase-5, 6 and 7 of Hayatabad. He said that hundreds of houses were searched during the operation.
Another official said that police seized weapons and explosives during raids in different suburban localities and took several people into custody.
In Swabi, about 170 suspects were arrested in a midnight search operation conducted jointly by Swabi and Mardan police in a village near Buner district.
District Police Officer Sajjad Khan told a press conference here on Sunday that the operation was carried out in Malikabad village.
Hand grenades, fuses and rocket launchers were seized during the operation.
The official said that a high profile wanted man identified as Khurram Mansoor alias Qazafi, involved in various anti-state activities, was among the arrested persons.
Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2014
