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| August 2017 Lahore bombing | |
|---|---|
| Part ofInsurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | |
| Location | Band Road,Lahore,Punjab,Pakistan |
| Coordinates | 31°32′9.74″N74°16′34.87″E / 31.5360389°N 74.2763528°E /31.5360389; 74.2763528 |
| Date | 7 August 2017 21:00 (PKT) |
Attack type | Truck bombing |
| Weapons | Explosive material |
| Deaths | 2 |
| Injured | 35 |
| 1 | |
| Motive | Islamic extremism |
On 7 August 2017, a truck bombing occurred at Band Road inLahore,Punjab,Pakistan. Two people were killed and 35 others were wounded.[citation needed]Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan is suspected to have perpetrated the attack.
Lahore suffered severalterrorist incidentsin 2017. This attack came two weeks aftera suicide bombing that claimed 26 lives,[1] which followeda blast targeting a census team in April[2] anda bombing that killed 13 people in February.[3]
According to a news article published inDaily Dunya on 1 August,law enforcement agencies had diligently informed theInspector General of thePunjab Police, Arif Nawaz, about the details and specific locations of the highly possible terror attacks.[4]
The agencies passed on information that several facilitators and groups of banned outfits near fruit markets were actively transportingexplosive materials, weapons,suicide jackets and timing devices via trucks and secretly occupying several buildings where they planned terror activities, the report stated.[citation needed]
Warning the police officials, the agencies said that thecheckpoints near the fruit markets were insufficient to ensure safety and security. The agencies directed them to carry out intelligence-based and combing operations in and around the target areas so that those who want to carry out the attacks in Punjab cannot do so easily.[5]
At around 20:50UTC+5:00, a truck loaded with fruitexploded, killing two and injuring 35 people.[6] Injuries were caused by debris of the building that collapsed as a result of explosion. More than 100 vehicles near the explosion were also damaged. The roof of a nearby school collapsed.[7] The explosion caused damage to an electrical transformer and consequently the electrical supply was suspended and the area of the explosion was darkened. People initially thought that the electrical transformer had exploded.[6] The explosion left a 10-foot crater on the ground. Parts of the truck were found several hundred meters away from the explosion site.[8]
As the explosion occurred about 300 meters away fromRescue 1122's headquarters, Rescue 1122 teams began to take the injured to Mian Munshi Hospital and Moyo Hospital. Security officials cordoned off the area. Thebomb disposal squad reached the site and discovered that 80 kilograms ofexplosive material was used.[9]
Following the attack, theCounter Terrorism Department (CTD) teams began their search operation. A few hours after the attack, a clash erupted between 7 terrorists and the CTD team in which 4 terrorists were shot dead while 3 others managed to flee in the dark. The terrorists were identified asTehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan's militants.[10]
CM PunjabShehbaz Sharif condemned the attack and directed the authorities to investigate it.[11]
