Blast kills 12 near Jalozai IDPs camp

A car bomb blast killed at least 12 people near a camp for displaced persons in district Nowshehra on Thursday, police and witnesses said.

District Police Officer (DPO) Nowshera Hussain Khan confirmed that 12 people lost lives and 30 others injured when a bomb planted in car blasted at Jalozai camp’s administration block.

He said the explosion occurred at a time when food items were being distributed among Internally Displaced People (IDPs) froom Bara Tehsil Khyber Agency.

Jalozai camp is located some 30 kilometers southeast of Peshawar on Pabbi Charat Road and one of largest refugee camps in Pakistan‚ which had accommodated more than 70‚000 Afghan refugees after Soviet Union had invaded in Afghanistan in 1979.

Currently‚ the IDPs of FATA were also resided in the Camp.The DPO said the dead and injured also include women and children.

According to the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS)‚ about 30 to 35 kilogram explosives were used in the powerful explosion. 3 vehicles and windowpanes of nearby buildings were also damaged.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Engr Shaukatull Khan strongly condemned the Jalozai blast and expressed profound grief over the loss of precious lives.He termed the incident is inhuman.

In a statement‚ he said elements involved in this gory incident would not escape from clutches of law and would be brought to justice soon.

Thousands of IDPs from the Khyber tribal region and some other affected areas live in the camp, officials said.

No group claimed responsibility for the blast.

Jalozai camp had earlier housed thousands of Afghan refugees for nearly 20 years.

Police sources said that the blast could be the result of the recent tension between the militants groups in Tirah Valley of Khyber agency.

The banned Tehrik-e-Taliban and Lashkar-e-Islam are involved in fighting with the government-backed Ansar-ul-Islam group, which claimed dozens of people from both sides.

Reports say that the TTP and L.I. have recently took control of Tirah Valley after clashes.

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Posted by Tahir Khan on Mar 21 2013. Filed under Latest News, National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.