DERA ISMAIL KHAN/NORTH WAZIRISTAN: Five policemen were injured when an improvised explosive device went off along a road in Dera Ismail Khan on Tuesday.

An official said a police mobile was targeted with an IED in Kulachi tehsil. He said the blast occurred when the mobile of Kulachi police was on way to a basic health unit in Maddi area for polio security duty on the second day of the anti-polio campaign.

As a result, five policemen were injured and the van was badly damaged.

A police contingent rushed to the spot soon after the incident and shifted the injured to a hospital.

According to the bomb disposal squad, the device was planted on the roadside near a bridge, which exploded when a police mobile was passing by. The police cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to track down the culprits.

The Counter-Terrorism Department registered a case against the unidentified suspects.

The injured policemen were identified as Elite Force personnel Adnan, Asmatullah and driver Khalid, belonging to Dera, and Jan Alam and Syed Aman from Shangla district.

Meanwhile, five people were wounded when an explosive device went off outside a seminary near Mirali town of North Waziristan district on Tuesday.

Officials said students were attending a ceremony inside the seminary when a loud explosion took place near the main gate of the madrassah in Eidak village.

The police said the device was planted near the seminary’s gate.

As a result of explosion, five people sustained injuries, who were shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Mirali.

The wounded people belonged to Eidak village. They were identified as Atharullah, Dilawar Khan, Rehman Gul, Fazal Mahmood and Mohammad Rasheed.

The police said a case had been registered against unknown persons.

Published in Dawn, February 23rd, 2022