KARACHI: A huge explosion occurred on a road outside the airport in Karachi on Sunday night, resulting in at least two fatalities and eleven injuries, including a foreign national.
Following the loud explosion that was audible across the town and as far away as Clifton, officials gave differing explanations, alternating between referring to it as a “IED blast” and saying it was an explosion caused by a car hitting an oil tanker.
Numerous police officers and Rangers were on the scene quickly, transporting the injured to a nearby hospital.
Several cars that were completely destroyed by flames could be seen in the explosion footage. According to officials, the Bomb Disposal Squad was investigating the type of explosion.
Officials claim too early to know if it was a ‘IED blast’ or ‘tanker explosion’
Deputy Inspector General (East) Capt (retd) Azfar Mahesar confirmed to reporters present at the scene that two persons had died in the explosion, which also damaged seven vehicles.
He stated that it would require some time to determine the precise cause of the explosion and that it was impossible to say for sure whether it was an accident or an act of terror until forensic findings came in.
An official statement attributed the attack to the banned Majeed Brigade of the Baloch Liberation Army, although this could not be independently confirmed.
At least nine injured people, including a police officer and a woman, were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, according to police surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed, who spoke with Dawn. According to police officials, two of the injured were also sent to a Clifton private hospital.
Waqar Ahmed, 28, Mohammed Ilyas, 35, Mohammed Naeem, 51, Ranu Khan, 35, Azeem Meer, 45, Mrs. Tasleem Noor, 48, Ali Rafiq, 29, Hamza Ateeq, 28, and Sabeeh Mohiuddin, 30 were the names of the injured.
The Airport Security Force cordoned off the area and sealed the airport’s entry and exit points after the explosion.
Following the explosion, a spokeswoman for the traffic police reported that the road from the Model Colony graveyard to the airport was off-limits to cars.
Murad Ali Shah, the chief minister of Sindh, also observed the situation and gave the police instructions to protect the public. The CM reportedly called the IGP and Sindh home minister to request a report on the event, according to APP. In order to minimize annoyance to passengers, he also suggested clearing the roads that lead to and from the airport.
Following the incident, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) released a statement stating that all of its assets were secure and that flights were proceeding according to plan.
Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori told media present that there was still work to be done on the probe and that conjecture should be avoided.
Upon his visit to the location, Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hasan Lanjar informed the media that they had information indicating the explosion was the result of an IED blast. According to the minister, when the explosion occurred, a convoy of foreign nationals was passing through the area.
