BARA: Eight soldiers were killed in a bomb explosion in the Bara Tehsil of Khyber Agency on Thursday, said a security official. “A double-cabin pick-up truck of security forces was heading from Alamgodar area to main Bara bazaar when it was targetted with an improvised explosive device (IED) near the Al-Haj Market locality,” he said on condition of anonymity.
He said eight soldiers, including a Captain named Manaan, were killed while three others sustained injuries. The other dead soldiers were identified as Tariq, Yousaf, Bahadur Shah, Ali Badshah, Nawaz Gul, Kamran Ali and Jan Afzal while the injured were named as Zulfaan, Nazir and Jamil Hussain. The injured were shifted to the Combined Military Hospital, Peshawar.
Official sources said the vehicle was completely destroyed in the blast. Subsequently, security forces cordoned off Al-Haj Market area and launched a search in the surrounding localities. Security forces also started shelling the suspected positions of militants in Bara Tehsil soon after the explosion.