PESHAWAR, Aug 24: At least 15 persons including eight policemen were injured here during an encounter with unidentified gunmen, who were trying to kidnap a man in the small hours on Saturday.

An official of Peshtakhara police said that armed men picked a man identified as Ikramuddin from Shoaib Hotel located on Ring Road at midnight and tried to shift him to Khyber Agency. However, two of the friends of the victim informed police timely and the attempt was foiled by law-enforcers after an encounter, he added.

“About 40 persons attired in black clothes and armed with sophisticated weapons were trying to kidnap the man,” the official said. He added that a police party, led by SHO Behram Khan, chased the kidnappers till Khushal Road in the limits of Sarband police station and exchanged fire with them.

In the meantime, he said, additional force also reached the spot and engaged the criminals. He said that the armed persons hurled a hand grenade at the police party. SHO Behram, sub-inspector Qaimat Gul and six other policemen of Peshtakhara and Sarband police station sustained injuries in the grenade attack, he added.

The official said that residents of the area also came out of their houses after gunshots. Several of the civilians also got injuries in firing and hand grenade attack by the armed persons, he said. The injured, he said, were rushed to a local hospital for treatment.

The official said that police faced hardships in shifting the injured persons to the hospital as the attackers continued firing with light and heavy weapons.

“Later, armoured personnel carriers also reached the spot and the attackers fled the scene,” he said. The fight, he said, continued at least for five hours. He said that the injured policemen and civilians were in stable condition.

The victim of the kidnapping attempt informed police that an unidentified man through a telephone call asked him to come out of the hotel and as he came out four persons bundled him in a silver colour motorcar. He said that the rest of the kidnappers were already waiting for their accomplices on the main road.

An official of Sarband police said that search operation was launched in Achini Upper, Sufaid Dheri and adjacent localities but the kidnappers managed to escape to tribal areas.

“Most of the problems being faced by the police are due to the closeness of tribal areas to Peshawar because the attackers manage to escape successfully soon after committing a crime,” the official said.