LAKKI MARWAT: Police foiled a terror bid by defusing a homemade bomb in Kurrum Garhi area of Bannu district on Friday.

A police official said a party of the cantonment police reached the area after learning about a suspected plastic canister lying there.

He said the police surrounded the area and called out experts of the bomb disposal squad to defuse the bomb planted by unknown miscreants.

“There would have been large-scale disaster had the bomb exploded,” the official said, adding that timely action by police saved the area and its people from a tragedy.

Meanwhile, unknown armed men reportedly kidnapped a police official from Circular Road in Bannu on Thursday night.

A police official confirmed the incident and said Assistant Sub-Inspector Sakhi Zaman had not been in contact since Thursday night, and on Friday it emerged from social media posts that he had been kidnapped by militants.

He said that the ASI posted to the Bakkakhel police station belonged to Ghoriwala town of the district.

“While on way to the police station on a motorcycle unknown armed men intercepted him on the Circular Road and took him away with them,” the official said.

He said the police had launched efforts to ensure safe recovery of the police official and arrest of his captors.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2024