KARACHI: The police retrieved an improvised explosive device (IED) from a train at Cantonment Railway Station in the port city on Saturday.
Law enforcement officers disclosed that upon receiving a tip-off regarding the presence of a bomb in the Awam Express, the bomb disposal unit promptly arrived at the station and neutralized the threat using a controlled detonation.
As per officials, the train, traveling from Peshawar to Karachi on Friday, concealed the bomb beneath a seat. Raja Umar Khattab, a senior officer from the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), indicated that a separatist faction might be behind the attempted sabotage. The bomb, discovered in a black and red school bag, was detailed by the bomb disposal unit.
Syed Asad Raza, Director General of Police (DIG) South, specified that the bomb, weighing 5 kilograms and comprising 2 kilograms of explosives, was rigged with a “time device” triggered by a motorcycle battery. The DIG highlighted the potential target zone as the north of Sindh, explaining that the bomb was set for detonation at 12 pm on Friday when the train was close to Sukkur-Rohri Junction. However, a malfunction in its wiring prevented the explosion.
He noted that the railway staff reported the bomb’s presence an hour after the train reached Cantt Station. Raza mentioned that no case had been registered yet but assured that it would be filed at the Railway Police Cantt Station.
(Islamabad51_Newsdesk)
