NWA political tehsildar targeted, killed in Peshawar blast: police

PESHAWAR: The political tehsildar of North Waziristran, his son, brother, and a cousin were killed in the car bomb blast that ripped through a market in Peshawar on Friday, Geo News reported.

According to police Hashim Gul was the prime target of this attack.

SP Rural Peshawar, Khurshid Khan told Geo News that device planted in a pickup truck exploded near Gul’s vehicle in the Matni area of Peshawar.

He confirmed the deaths of NWA’s district Dosli’s Political Tehsildar, Hashim Gul, his son Sajeel, brother Zahir Shah, and cousin Ajab Gul.

“It could only be ascertained after five hours that Gul’s family was the target”, said he.

According to local sources, Gul, a resident of Adizai area in Matni, was vacationing here.

He was attacked when he was having his vehicle repaired at a motor mechanic’s workshop.

An FIR has been lodged against the unknown perpetrators under various sections of anti-terrorism laws in the Matni police station.

It is pertinent to mention that the death toll of the blast stood at 12, with 12 wounded -- three in a critical condition.

Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the home minister for northwestern Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province, told a foreign agency three men had taken the vehicle to a workshop and a mechanic was working on it when the blast occurred.

"We are investigating whether the car was brought to (the) workshop for mechanical repairs or to plant a bomb, or whether the bomb had already been planted and it went off during repair," Hussain said.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Taliban
militants have been carrying out similar bombings and suicide attacks in Peshawar.

In the last five years, attacks blamed on terrorists have killed more than 5,000 people according to a tally.