PESHAWAR/MUZAFFARGARH: Three terrorists were killed in an explosion that destroyed a vehicle on Safaid Sang Road in Peshawar on Friday morning.
Police claimed the three men were suspected terrorists and one of them was wearing a suicide vest which went off and Peshawar was saved from a major terror bid.
The police said the terrorists from Khyber Agency were riding on a motorcycle with an intention to carry out a major act of terrorism in the city.
Police said they recovered another suicide vest, ten grenades, and two AK-47 guns from the location of the explosion.
The Bomb Disposal Squad was called in to ascertain exact nature of the blast. Bodies were also taken to a hospital for post-mortem examination.
SP Peshawar said of the three killed, two were foreigners and the driver was local.
Meanwhile, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab Police, with the help of an intelligence agency of the country, conducted a raid here late on Thursday night, killing six suspects allegedly affiliated with a banned organisation.
Official sources said those killed in the shootout included Yasir Punjabi who was wanted for his alleged involvement in several acts of terrorism.
The sources said Yasir escaped from Multan on Wednesday and was killed when he was traveling on a motorbike with one of his accomplices in Muzaffargarh.
Four other suspects, believed to be accomplices of Yasir Punjabi, were shot dead in another vehicle.
Bodies of the suspects were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ) for medico-legal formalities.
The CTD also claimed to have seized a cache of arms and explosives from their possession.
Authorities in Punjab have intensified operation against criminal elements and members of proscribed militant organisations since a deadly bombing in a park in Lahore killed over 60 people earlier this year.
The army and paramilitary forces have also been working in close coordination with police and civil intelligence agencies in the province to eliminate terror networks.
According to details, Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) and police on a tip-off that six terrorists who escaped after an operation in Multan on Wednesday are planning to flee to Balochistan intercepted a car and a motorcycle at the Link Road near Dera Ghazi Khan on Thursday night. The terrorists opened fire at the law enforcement agencies which was retaliated as a result six terrorists were killed.
Automatic rifles, explosive material, a car and a motorcycle were recovered from the dead terrorists. Sources said that the terrorists were planning attacks on the universities in the area.
It is pertinent to mention here that eight terrorists were killed during a joint operation of CTD and police at the bank of ChenabRiver near Multan on Wednesday while six of their accomplices managed to escape.
INP