By Javed Aziz Khan
Eight rockets were fired at the city from the nearby Khyber Agency on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday, some of which landed in Industrial Estate and Labour Colony in Hayatabad while others fell in Jamrud tribal area. Two persons sustained injuries when a shell landed inside a house in Hayatabad.
A police official told The News that Mangal Bagh and his deputies Wahid, Saifur and others had been charged in the first information report (FIR) in the last rocket attack on Hayatabad Township on Wednesday. Hayatabad is separated from the Khyber Agency only by a mile-long wall and has proved to be the easiest target for terrorists.
Rocket attacks have intensified after launch of the military operation in Bara subdivision of Khyber Agency. Bara is the stronghold of banned LI. Many people, however, believe that local chapter of banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and outlawed Ansarul Islam, a rival group of LI, were also involved in the attacks on the provincial capital.
Mangal Bagh, once considered as supporter of the government and security forces, had been charged in FIRs lodged in the killing of 18 villagers in Sheikhan a couple of years ago, suicide attack in Momin Town on Dilazak Road last month and some other terrorist attacks.
In the recent attacks on the provincial capital, four rockets were fired in the wee hours of Tuesday, injuring a labourer and damaging two houses in Hayatabad and narrowly missing a police post on Jamrud Road.
Nine more shells landed in different parts of the provincial metropolis in two successive attacks on Sunday last. Four of these shells were fired early in the morning while the rest were launched late Sunday night. A similar attack was carried out on Friday in which six rockets were fired.
“One cannot sleep at night as constant rocket barrages on the residential area, especially Phase-1, 2 and 5. On September 15, one rocket landed inside a private hospital to scare scores of patients admitted there,” said a resident of Hayatabad, Khurram Shaukat Yusufzai. “On September 14, a shell struck a house in D-2 Sector of Phase-1 and damaged the building. The inhabitants remained safe, as the shell did not explode.”
Hundreds of rockets have been fired at the provincial metropolis during the last few months. These hit the Peshawar International Airport, offices of the security agencies, residences and innumerable public places. Five out of the six international airlines diverted their flights to Islamabad after threats of rocket attacks.
Rocket attacks intensified after the military operation was launched in Bara subdivision of Khyber Agency to flush out militant rings, posing a constant threat to the provincial capital.