21
KARACHI: Initial investigations of Tuesday's North Nazimabad blast revealed that around five to eight kilograms of explosive material was used in the explosion, DawnNews quoted the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) special unit as claiming.
The FIA's team visited the site of the explosion and analysed the area for forensic evidence.
“The explosive material contained around 500-800 ball bearings,” FIA’s investigation unit said.
A First Investigation Report (FIR) into the incident was registered under the Explosives Act and Anti-Terrorism Act on behalf of the state.
According to the FIR, the first explosion took place at 19: 19 PST (local time) and the second explosion occurred a minute later.
At least seven people, including a three-month-old baby, a 12-year-old girl and a woman, were killed and 22 others injured — the victims predominantly belonging to the Dawoodi Bohra community — when twin blasts rocked the North Nazimabad neighbourhood.
LJ involvement
Police detained two brothers of one of the men suspected to have been involved in the blast.
According to police’s initial investigation, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi’s (LJ) Shuja Haider group was involved in the attack.
Police claimed that LJ members Mohammad Shaqib Farooqui, Murtaza alias Shakil, Arab Miskeen, Murad Shah and several others were involved in Tuesday’s blast.
The LJ members were also suspected to have been involved in three blasts in 2009 — a blast in Orangi Town on Muharram 8, a blast at Paposh Nagar Chandni chowk on Muharram 9 and a blast in the Light House area on Muharram 10.
The suspects were arrested from Mauripur Road in 2010 but had managed to escape from the city courts' premises after attacking the police with hand grenades.
Speaking to media representatives, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Karachi West Naeem Akram said that Tuesday’s blast had similarities with the blast that took place near the Chinese Consulate blast on July 23, 2012.
The blasts came a day after the visit of Syedi Mufaddal Bhaisaheb Saifuddin, designated successor of Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin.
An improvised explosive device (IED) weighing around 25 kilograms had been found at the same place on Aug 13 and had been defused by the police.
