SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: A 10-kilogramme improvised explosive device planted in Rustam Bazaar in Wana was defused by the Bomb Disposal Unit on Saturday, police officials said.

Lower South Waziristan district police officer Shah Hassan said that the IED had been planted in Shirajami Street of Rustam Bazaar.

The police were alerted about the device following which officials of the BDU reached the site along with other officials.

The area was cordoned off and the BDU team, led by its in-charge Shehzad, launched an operation to neutralise the device. The 10kg ‘pressure’ bomb was subsequently defused.

DPO Hassan said the timely action by the police and BDU team averted an imminent sabotage act in the busy commercial area.

He said further investigation was under way to determine who had planted the device and establish the motive behind the attempt.

Speaking to Dawn by telephone, DSP Asghar Ali Shah said the pressure bomb IEDs were a relatively new method being used by terrorists for targeted attacks. He said initial investigations suggested that the device planted in Rustam Bazaar might have been intended to target leaders of a local peace committee.

The DSP said a similar pressure bomb IED exploded on the lower floor of a market in Rustam Bazaar a few days ago, killing a cleric, Mufti Jana Mir.

He said investigators were examining both incidents and efforts were under way to identify those responsible.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2026