Major, sepoy martyred in Mohmand IED blast

GHALLANAI: A major and a sepoy of the paramilitary Frontier Corps were martyred and another soldier sustained injuries in an explosion caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) near the Pak-Afghan border in the Mohmand tribal district on Friday, sources said.

The sources said that at least three IEDs exploded to target a team of Mohmand Rifles near the fenced border. Major Adeel Shahid and Sepoy Faraz Hussain embraced martyrdom while Sepoy Gulfam was injured in the explosion.

A statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the squad under the martyred officer was supervising fencing work in an area "which carried [a] critical infiltration route.” The injured soldier was taken to the Combined Military Hospital in Peshawar. He was stated to be stable at the hospital.

Soon after the blast, the security forces launched a search operation in the area and tightened security. The Namaz-i-Janaza of the martyrs was held at the Mohmand Rifles camp in Mohmand district.

Inspector General Frontier Corps (IGFC), Maj-Gen Rahat Naseem Ahmed Khan, Deputy Commissioner Mohmand district Iftikhar Alam and other military and civil officers attended the funeral prayers.

Later, the bodies of the two martyrs were brought to Peshawar where another Namaz-i-Janaza was held. Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, Corps Commander Lt-Gen Shaheen Mazhar Mehmood, IGFC and other civil and military officials attended the funeral. The body of Major Adeel Shahid was taken to Karachi while that of Sepoy Faraz Hussain was transported to Kotli in Azad Jammu and Kashmir for burial.