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Militants attack Pakistan air force base; 6 killed
Police officers secure an area in the capital of Tajikistan, Dushanbe, where several Interior Ministry special forces officers and a traffic policeman were reportedly shot dead earlier on Sept
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Police officers secure an area in the capital of Tajikistan, Dushanbe, where several Interior Ministry special forces officers and a traffic policeman were reportedly shot dead earlier on Sept. 4. (AP/Peter Leonard) (AP/Peter Leonard)
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span class="inline inline-center">Police officers secure an area in the capital of Tajikistan, Dushanbe, where several Interior Ministry special forces officers and a traffic policeman were reportedly shot dead earlier on Sept. 4. (AP/Peter Leonard)
Militants in northwestern Pakistan attacked an air force base on the outskirts of Peshawar early Friday, triggering a shootout that left at least six of the attackers dead, the army said.
The assault on the Badaber air base came as the army has been carrying out a major operation against local and foreign militants in North Waziristan tribal region bordering Afghanistan.
Six of the attackers were killed and two soldiers wounded in the attack, army spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa said.
He said the attackers stormed the guard room of the base, but the attack was quickly repulsed. Security forces were engaged in clearing up operations and were searching for militants who might be hiding in the area, he said.
TV footage showed army helicopters hovering near the base, as police and troops surrounded the area. Local police officer Shahid Khan Bangash said a large explosion was heard after the "terrorists" tried to enter the air force base. "We are hearing that the attackers were armed with guns and rockets," he said.
Bangash said the attackers threw grenades at the guard room but they could not enter the main area.
He said the firing had stopped but a search operation was still under way. He did not say how many attackers were involved.
A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, Mohamad Khurasani, claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement released to the media, he said they would provide details about the attackers shortly.
The Badaber air base, located on the edge of Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, was not functional and it was mostly being used as a residential place for the employees and officers of the air force. The base was established in 1960s.
The attack came a day after a counter-terrorism officer Junaid Khan in Karachi said they had arrested a militant who recently made a failed attempt to target an air force facility in Kamra in the northwest. He identified the arrested person as Umar Hayat and said officers were still questioning him. (k)(++++)
