Cop, civilian official martyred in Peshawar attacks

PESHAWAR: A police constable and an officer of the Social Welfare Department were shot dead in two separate attacks in the provincial capital on Thursday.

The first incident occurred on Charsadda Road, where armed assailants fatally shot Constable Kamran Taj in Gulbela within the jurisdiction of Daudzai Police Station. An official said Taj was attacked while on his way to the Khan Raziq Police Station.

Following the incident, security checks were intensified across Peshawar, and a search operation was initiated in the area to apprehend the perpetrators.

Shortly after the first attack, unidentified gunmen targetted the vehicle of Hamayun Abdullah, an official of the Social Welfare Department, in Gulbahar locality.

Abdullah sustained injuries and succumbed to them before reaching the hospital.

Officials said that he was on way to the office along with his driver, Shafiq, when the attackers fired a burst at their car before making a swift escape. The driver remained unharmed.

Capital City Police Officer Ashfaq Anwar said that special investigation teams, led by divisional SPs, have been formed to probe both incidents. He said the cases were under investigation from all possible angles.

Also, CCTV footage and other evidence from the scenes of the attacks have been collected and sent for forensic analysis.