Islamabad suicide bomber ‘attempted to attack Faizabad checkpoint’
ISLAMABAD: In an alarming revelation, it has come to light that the suicide attacker behind the Islamabad blast was involved in a failed attempt at targeting the Faizabad checkpoint.
During the ongoing investigation into the terrorist’s facilitator and handler, it has come to the fore that the suicide bomber had reached the Faizabad checkpoint but couldn’t remove the pin of the explosives to detonate.
The terrorist returned to Rawalpindi after the pin could not be removed and then carried out the attack at the judicial complex a few days later.
The suicide explosion at the Judicial Complex left 12 people martyred and at least 36 wounded, including lawyers and petitioners, and prompted the suspension of court proceedings. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said the attacker detonated near a police vehicle after failing to enter the courthouse.
Police reported the blast set nearby cars ablaze and scattered debris across the area.
An investigation report prepared by the police stated the bomber arrived in Islamabad last Friday and travelled to the court from Pirwadhai on a motorcycle.
The attack, the capital’s first suicide bombing in nearly three years, since December 2022, occurred as Islamabad was hosting major international events, including the Inter-Parliamentary Speakers’ Conference and the sixth Margalla Dialogue.
Since then, the federal government has announced the arrest of four members of a Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan/Fitna al-Khawarij (TTP/FAK) cell linked to the suicide attack at the Islamabad District Judicial Complex, G-11.
Sajidullah alias Sheena, who was the handler of the suicide bomber, confessed that TTP/FAK Commander Saeed-ur-Rehman alias Daadullah (resident of Charmang, Bajaur, currently in Afghanistan, and serving as TTP’s Intelligence Chief for Nawagai, Bajaur) contacted him through the Telegram application to carry out a suicide attack in Islamabad to cause maximum casualties of LEAs. The official statement released by the government’s X handle also said that Daadullah sent pictures of the suicide bomber (SB) Usman alias Qari to Sajidullah alias Sheena for receiving him. SB Usman Qari belonged to the Shinwari tribe and was a resident of Achin, Nangarhar, Afghanistan. When he reached Pakistan from Afghanistan, Sajidullah alias Sheena arranged his stay in a residence near Islamabad. Monitoring Desk
