An anti-terrorism operation concluded Tuesday afternoon after a 17-hour confrontation between suspected terrorists and security forces.
Peshawar Corps Commander Lt Gen Shaheen Mazhar Mahmood on Tuesday morning visited the ongoing anti-terrorist operation in the Hayatabad area of the city .
The visit came after four suspected terrorists had been killed and a policeman martyred so far in the longest-ever security operation in the area.
During his visit, Lt Gen Mahmood directed security officials to adopt all possible precautions to ensure the security of the area’s affected residents.
He lauded the security personnel present at the site, who have been engaged with the suspected terrorists since 8pm last night. He offered that army commandos could be involved in the final push, if need be.
Residents living around the said house were evacuated with the help of security personnel and rescue forces. Two injured women from the area were also shifted to the Hayatabad Medical Complex for treatment.
Police sources told a private channel that four or five suspected terrorists have been killed so far. According to the sources, two or three suspected terrorists are continuing to offer resistance after having taken refuge in the top floor of a house in a residential area located in Phase 7 of the upscale Hayatabad locality.
Meanwhile, funeral prayers for the martyred policeman, Qamar Alam, were offered in Malik Saad Shaheed Police Lines in Peshawar.
KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, Corps Commander Mahmood, KP Inspector General of Police Mohammad Naeem and other officials participated in the prayers.
CM Khan, while talking to the media, said that police had launched the operation on a tip off that suspected terrorists were hiding in a house in the Hayatabad area.
“The operation is ongoing,” he added.
An eyewitness present at the site said, “The people [suspected terrorists] had been living in the house on a rental basis for almost 15 days. They seemed to be from the rural areas from their appearance. All of them were middle-aged men and there were no woman with them. They used to enter and exit the building using the basement door only.”