PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Ghulam Ali has said all those responsible for attacking the customs officials in Dera Ismail Khan on Thursday would be brought to justice.

He said all the law enforcement agencies would have to devise a strategy so that such incidents didn’t happen in future.

He was talking to mediapersons after attending the funeral prayers of two martyred customs officials — Iftikhar Alam, a resident of Charsadda, and Shahab Ali of Mardan — in the provincial capital on Friday.

Chief collector customs Saeed Akram said the martyred officials would be compensated under the Shuhada package and one of their legal heirs would be given job.

On Thursday, five customs officials were martyred when they were conducting an intelligence-based operation in Dera.

A press release from the Directorate General of Intelligence and Investigation Customs said the officials were ambushed by “unknown assailants in a dastardly attack and fired upon with automatic weapons” while conducting the IBO on Daraban Road near Sagguu village around 3.30pm on Thursday.

“Despite all odds, they remained committed to their mission, serving the nation with honour and distinction. Their courage in the face of adversity serves as a shining example of gallantry,” the statement said.

It identified the martyrs as intelligence officer Aslam Khan, Havaldars Inayatullah Khan and Akbar Zaman and sepoys Iftikhar Alam and Shahab Ali.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2024