TIMERGARA, July 15: At least five soldiers of the Pakistan Army and Dir Scouts were injured when Taliban militants fired rockets on the Dir Scouts headquarters in Balambat early on Tuesday morning.

According to local people, rockets were fired from the nearby Sapary Malakand hill at short intervals, causing panic in officer’s colonies in Balambat and Timergara. Security forces fired back from the scouts’ fort.

Lower Dir district police officer Fida Hassan told Dawn that 10 rockets had been fired by the Taliban militants from the Malakand hill. One of the rockets hit the main gate of the fort, injuring the five soldiers identified as Umar Daraz, Gul Nawaz, Anwar Khan, Zeeshan and Shakeel. They were taken to the army medical unit in the fort. Another rocket hit the house of a local physician.

One rocket landed in the scouts’ parade ground, damaging a helipad. Some splinters of the rockets landed near the National Bank branch and the local PTCL building, but no damage was reported.

The exchange of heavy fire continued for more than an hour, forcing residents to remain indoors.