KARACHI: Two passers-by were killed and seven people, including a senior police officer, were injured in a bomb blast here on Thursday.

The target of the attack was Farooq Awan, SSP, special investigation unit, who had worked against suspected militants in the metropolis, officials said.

He had escaped two attempts on his life in the recent past.

The police officer was on way home in Defence Society from his office in Saddar. When his convoy reached Khayaban-i-Momin, near Saudi Consulate in Phase IV, around 50kg of improvised explosive device planted in a parked vehicle was detonated through remote control, said Karachi South DIG Barrister Abdul Khalique Shaikh.

Officer injured, two passers-by killed

The SSP’s bullet-proof vehicle and a police mobile were badly damaged in the explosion. Since the blast hit left side of the vehicle and the officer sat on the right, he suffered only minor injuries, the DIG said, adding that Mr Awan himself drove the vehicle.

Two policemen in the accompanying mobile van and four passersby, two women among them, were injured in the incident. There was no gunman in SSP’s vehicle.

The wounded were taken to the Jinnah Post-graduate Medical Centre, where Abdul Ghafoor died, said Dr Seemin Jamali, head of emergency at the JPMC. The victim was travelling in a car and died after splinters hit him.

Another injured, Kaleem­ullah, died during treat­ment. He worked for a fast food restaurant and was going to deliver burgers in the area.

Policemen Syed Rehan and Sartaj and passersby Musarrat, Mehwish, Ishtiaq and Ayub were admitted to the hospital.

Dr Jamali said the condition of Mr Sartaj was critical as he had sustained multiple wounds in his head caused by pellets used in the blast.

SSP Farooq Awan was admitted to a private hospital, where he is stated to be out of danger.

“The senior police officer might have been targeted by suspected militants because he had worked against them,” said DIG Abdul Khalique Shaikh.

The CID police’s counter-terror unit chief, Raja Umer Khattab, believed that the banned Jundullah, which has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack, might be involved in it.

He said earlier the murder of Ali Akbar Kumaili, son of prominent Shia scholar and former Senator Allama Abbas Kumaili and a grenade attack on 15-Madadgar police at Nursery on Sharae Faisal in Karachi were also reportedly claimed by Jundullah.

Mr Khattab, who had worked on high-profile terror cases, said Jundullah had been ‘reactivated’ after a gap of about one-and-a-half years in the city.

He said a CCTV camera showed that an obese man wearing Shalwar Kameez, with a cap on his head, had parked a vehicle laden with explosives at the scene of the blast at 9:03pm. As soon as the man, who appeared to be disabled, left the area the blast took place at 9:07pm.

Additional IG Ghulam Qadir Thebu told reporters at the scene that judging by the crater, it didn’t look like a collision between two vehicles. “And since there are no body parts lying around, this cannot be called a suicide attack,” he pointed out.

Meanwhile, IG Sindh Ghulam Hyder Jamali has set up a team, led by the AIG Karachi, with the DIG South and the DIG CID as its members, to investigate the incident.

Scene of attack: The dark path leading to the blast site was strewn with shards of glass and leaves and branches of a tree.

Police had blocked the road at the Saudi consulate turning, but one could still reach the site by driving ahead on Khayaban-i-Hafiz and reach the water pump near gate five of the Gizri graveyard. There was chaos some 15 minutes after the blast that was also heard from far.

“See these are parts from a car chassis,” one constable with a torch told Dawn. But where was the car? He only shrugged in reply gesturing ahead.

A motorcycle lay on the road with a black food delivery box, with ‘Hanifia Hunter Beef’ printed on it lying nearby. There was blood all around it. Someone said that it belonged to the delivery boy who lost his life in the attack. “Poor man, what had he ever done to anyone?” someone wondered aloud.

Another speculated that the delivery boy might have been a suicide bomber who rammed SSP Farooq Awan’s car. But someone quickly corrected him to point out that he was an innocent victim, just going about his job.

The white double cabin pick-up belonging to the SSP was badly damaged but not destroyed. “It was bullet-proof and armoured so the SSP survived,” said an eye-witness.

Another eye-witness said: “I was close by and my heart almost stopped beating when I heard the blast. It was very loud and I saw one of these,” he pointed towards the two damaged vehicles, “fly in the air and hit the tree here. Look at the billboard outside the graveyard, pieces from the cars hit the billboard too,” he said pointing then to the huge tattered billboard up ahead.

The road and houses were all enveloped in darkness. Someone pointed out that some people in a house at the corner might have sustained minor injuries.

“It was near our place. Yes, we are all fine, thank God!” said another gentleman speaking to someone on his cellphone while getting into his car.

Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2014