HANGU Jan: A powerful bomb blast ripped through a passenger coach here Monday killing eighteen people and injuring 11 others on Kohat-Hangu Road,DIG Kohat Range, Masood Afridi said.The DIG told at the site of the blast that it was remote-controlled bomb planted in a Kohat bound coach. The bomb exploded when the vehicle reached Ali Zai Jozara check post, border area of Kohat and Hangu. Eight kilogram explosion dumped in the vehicle was used in the explosion.The circumstantial evidence indicates that it was not a suicide attack but the planted explosive had detonated, he added.Regarding the confusion regarding the nature of the blast, the DIG said some circles were saying that it was a cylinder blast. Dr Tufail,Incharge Emegency Ward Hungu Hospital said that he received 12 dead bodies of whom two could be identified while 11 others are being treated at hospital.The eleven injured were not from the vehicles which exploded but they were very near to the ill-fated vehicle.
The condition of the injured shifted to Peshawar hospitals were stated to be critical. It pertinent to mention here that no women and children included among the dead.The dead identified are Nasir Khan son of Khan Muhammad, Kamil Shah residents of Hangu, Gul Maan Shah son of Lal Badshah resident of Orakzai Agency,Badshah Mir son of Akhtar Gul resident of Kurram Agency, Zulfiqar Ali son of Dalayar Ali resident of Hangu, Hazrat Noor son of Jan Muhammad resident of Afghanistna, Iqrar Ali son Syed Shah Jehan and Muhammad Ghani son of Fazal Manan resident of Hangu while the identity of other victims could not immediately ascertained due to their burnt bodies.The injured area Hazrat Noor, Kamran, Janan, Tahir Muhammad, Raqeeb Khan,Zaman Khan, Muhammad Razak, Tala Muhammad, Inamullha Khan and Muhammad Tafil.The Security forces soon after the incident cordoned off the area and started operations – APP