Daily Times

Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Tuesday said that firing at police party in vicinity of Karachi Company was a terrorist incident.

Talking to media persons after attending funeral of martyred constable, he said Head Constable Munawar embraced martyrdom in the firing incident. It was not a matter of robbery or dacoity rather it was purely an incident of terrorism, he added.

He said the accused had been traced through their bikes. It was first terrorist incident of this year and we had to remain alert, he added. He said the police had proved that they were ready to scarify their lives for defense of the motherland.

Sheikh Rasheed warned of more terrorism-related incidents in the federal capital. He said the authorities had tracked down the “sleeper cell” of the terrorists through their motorcycle. “Islamabad police and other forces are on alert.”

Shahid Zaman, a senior Islamabad Police official, also told AFP the incident was “an act of terrorism”.

The martyred police official has been identified as Head Constable Munawwar, while the injured include Amin and Rashid, a spokesperson for the police said. The spokesperson added that the wounded officers received treatment at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).

“This is the first terror-related incident in the country […] but police, through this encounter, have proved that they are ready to lay down their lives no matter what comes their way,” the interior minister added.

On Monday, the shootout took place in Karachi Company police precincts in Sector G-8. Three other policemen were injured in the exchange of fire. It is said to be the eighth incident of violence against police officers in Islamabad since January 7.