RAWALPINDI: Three Chinese nationals and two Pakistanis were detained by the Airport Security Force (ASF) after the ASF mistakenly shot down a camera drone belonging to a Chinese construction company working on the Islamabad International Airport on Thursday.

Security sources said the three Chinese nationals are associated with construction at the airport and have been vetted. All five individuals were released later on.

The official said they have been clearly instructed to shoot down any object, such as a drone, that violates security.

The drone was spotted by an ASF official flying over the drop lane at around 11:10am. The security official, with the permission from the ASF chief security officer, shot down the drone, which was recording the airport terminal without permission from the concerned authorities.

The debris of the drone fell in the general car park, but did not injure anyone. ASF staff spotted four people rushing towards the car park to collect the remnants of the drone and arrested them and shifted them to the ASF control room.

The preliminary investigation revealed that the Chinese nationals who have been arrested were working for a Chinese construction company on the new airport. They told investigators they had received permission from the Civil Aviation Authority, before the ASF took over security at the airport.

A security official said their mobile phones had been confiscated and their call data was reviewed.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2018