Attackers planned to occupy PAF camp: security officials

PESHAWAR: Senior security officials on Saturday said the militants had come with a plan of occupying the Pakistan Air Force camp in Badaber as they had brought arms and explosives to be able to resist forces for one day or night.
However, security officials said the militants could not succeed in their nefarious designs due to the prompt action by the PAF guards at the second defence line in Badaber and immediate response of the Quick Reaction Force (QRF), the commandos of SSG, Frontier Constabulary and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police to prevent the attackers from entering the strategic installations.
“Had the PAF guards not responded effectively, there would have been widespread destruction in the camp. But luckily the guards encountered the militants before they could breach the second defence line,” said security expert Shafqat Malik.
Shafqat is working as an Additional Inspector General (AIG) at the Khyber Pakhtun-khwa Police and is an expert in dealing with explosive devices in the militancy-plagued Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
“The militants had planned to occupy the Badaber Camp instead of killing people but they miserably failed in their mission,” he opined.
He said the militants split into two groups after breaching the first defence line and one group attempted to enter the strategic location by breaking the second defence line. He said the militants had brought a lot of weapons and explosive devices which they would use for one day or night to offer resistance to the law-enforcement agencies.
“I am so happy that for the first time our security forces followed the standard procedures and prevented heavy human and financial losses,” Shafqat Malik, head of Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS), Peshawar, told The News.
He said every terrorist was armed with AK-47 assault rifle, two hand-carry improvised explosive devices and several rounds of RPG-7. Also, he said, every militant was having a lighter for triggering the IEDs.
Shafqat Malik said the militants had brought under barrel grenades but it was for the first time their weapons could not work. “Most of the under barrel grenades fired from their rifles didn’t explode due to unknown reasons,” he said.
The AIG said their aim was to enter the technical block and cause as much damage as possible on the logistics of Pakistan Air Force but they could not succeed due to prompt response by the PAF guards.
Shafqat Malik led his BDS team and defused 25 IEDs recovered from the slain militants.
He said eight militants were killed near the parking area which, he added, turned into a battlefield after the PAF guards encountered them at the second line of defence and prevented them from entering the sensitive area.
Other security officials said the intelligence agencies had issued alerts about possible terrorist acts and based on that information the security of sensitive installations was upgraded. However, they had no idea the terrorists would target the PAF Camp in Badaber.
“There were some security alerts issued by our intelligence agencies recently but those weren’t specific,” a senior security official told The News in Peshawar.
Pleading anonymity, he said the security of the PAF camp in Peshawar was also upgraded after alerts were issued about serious threat to important government and military installations. He said this saved the Badaber Camp and its technical block from destruction when the militants stormed it.
“The terrorists seemed to be aware of the area where the camp is located. They might have their sympathisers either within or outside the base. They chose such timing for their attack when most of the people were in the mosque or preparing for the early morning prayers,” the security official said.
According to security officials, the attackers spent their night in the nearby village before storming the camp.
He said the group that planned the attack was based in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province.
“After the massacre of schoolchildren in Peshawar last year, we thought this group led by Khalifa Omar Mansoor would no more carry out such attacks in Pakistan from Afghanistan. But he did and this time he chose a most-important location,” the official said.