A gun battle raged for more than three hours following the assault after dusk, as security forces went floor-to-floor through the building in pursuit of the assailants. The forces retook the building after killing the three militants, a government spokesperson said.
The attack, claimed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), came just weeks after a bomb blast at a police mosque in Peshawar killed over 100 people, mostly policemen. Officials said late on Friday that security would be stepped up in Islamabad.
The tightly guarded KPO is located behind the Saddar police station on Sharea Faisal. The compound is home to dozens of administrative and residential buildings as well as hundreds of officers and their families.
The attack began between 7pm and 7:30pm on Friday. The terrorists, reportedly drove a silver-coloured vehicle to reach the Saddar Police Lines behind the KPO. The assailants first entered a local mosque near the KPO under the cover of indiscriminate fire.
The imam of the mosque told that he had concluded the Maghrib prayers, when he heard the gunshots. He added that as soon as he came out of the mosque, the terrorists opened fire
A sweeper lost his life due to firing by the terrorists there, officials said later. The terrorists then reached the KPO premises and entered the building. The police said the attackers used more than 20 hand grenades during the assault.
As soon as the incident was reported, police, Rangers and the Special Security Unit, officers from other agencies and trained commandos reached the spot. Sharea Faisal was closed for traffic, while electricity supply was also cut off in the area.
During the initial operation, a terrorist wearing a suicide jacket blew himself up on the fourth floor of the building. After that, the police and Rangers commandos started searching the upper floors of the building.
During that time, the area reverberated with heavy gunfire and loud explosions from inside the compound. Finally, the terrorists reached the roof of the building where they hunkered down until they were killed by the Rangers and police commandos in a tough battle.
“Four people were killed in the attack, including two policemen, one Ranger, and one sanitary worker,” Sindh government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab Siddiqui said. “The operation has concluded with the killing of all three terrorists,” he added.
The Sindh Rangers said in a late night statement that its Quick Response Force (QRF) was deployed, adding that the operation was led by Brig Tauqeer of the Counter-Terrorism Wing, known as the Qalandar Force.
“The police office building was cleared in a phased joint operation by the Counter-Terrorism Wing of the Rangers,” a Sindh Rangers spokesperson said. “Pakistan Army, Rangers and police fought bravely and foiled the terrorist attack.”
The spokesperson identified the martyred Rangers personnel as Sub-Inspector Taimur, adding that seven Rangers men were injured. “The injured have been shifted to the Jinnah Hospital for medical treatment.”
Siddiqui, the Sindh government spokesperson, said that one of the injured persons was in critical condition, while 13 of them were stable. He added that Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah reached the office of the Sindh police chief to monitor the situation.
Karachi South Deputy Inspector General of Police Irfan Baloch said up to 30 policemen were present at the time of the attack. He added the terrorists carried hand grenades and Kalashnikovs, besides gram, dates, water bottles and other items.
The car in which the terrorists had come was left running throughout the operation. The police later recovered an Ajrak, a mat, slippers, water bottles, a number plate placed on the dashboard and a magazine.
Siddiqui said that the security forces retook the building after several hours and killed three militants. The police commandos and a bomb disposal squad entered the building and a security sweep was under way.
Police officers take position after a police office building was attacked by gunmen in Karachi, Pakistan February 17, 2023. PHOTO: REUTERS
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah called the attackers “terrorists... armed with grenades and other weapons”, saying that they fired a rocket at a gate. “There’s a general threat across the country but there was no specific threat to this place,” he added.
President Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari condemned the terrorist attack. They said that the whole nation stood with the security forces in the fight against terrorism.
The office of the Karachi police chief, which came under attack on Friday evening at 0710 PM by armed militants, has been cleared, three-and-a-half hours after the attack occurred, officials said, adding that at least three terrorists had been killed.
“I can so far confirm that the Karachi Police Office (KPO) building has been cleared. Three terrorists have been neutralised,” said Sindh government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab on Twitter at 10:42pm, three-and-a-half hours after the attack occurred.
Speaking to media , he reiterated that the building had been secured. He said that the bomb disposal squad was checking if the jackets worn by the terrorists were rigged to detonate.
A spokesperson for the Sindh Rangers added the operation had been completed and the process of clearing the area was under way.
DIG East Muqaddas Haider, who was among the senior officers leading the operation, told Dawn.com, that there were a total of three attackers who arrived at the KPO in a Toyota Corolla.Haider said that one of the attackers blew himself up on the building’s fourth floor while two others were shot dead on the roof.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Karachi police said that all three terrorists who attacked the KPO had been killed in the operation. The spokesperson said that this was a “major operation” in which senior police officials, including the South and East DIGs, had participated alongside the Rangers and the army.
“With grace of Almighty Allah, the KPO and surrounding areas have been cleared of the terrorists completely and further information will be shared with the media soon,” the police statement said.
Reports of firing on Sharea Faisal — Karachi’s main thoroughfare with a number of strategic installations, including the Pakistan Airforce’s Faisal Base — emerged around 7:15pm. Extra police contingents and Rangers were called to the site of the attack.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said that the attack took place around 7:10pm. He said that the city police chief was not currently in Karachi
Sharea Faisal had been closed for traffic during the operation with the Sindh government spokesperson requesting citizens to stay put where they were.
The Saddar police station, located next to the police chief’s office, had also issued a statement saying it had come under attack. “SHO, PI Khalid Hussain Memon said that unknown accused [attacked] Saddar police station near Karachi Police Office. Firing is going on everywhere,” the initial statement had said.
South DIG Irfan Baloch earlier told said that “spectacular” firing was ongoing but said that the situation would be brought under control. He had, however, refused to comment on the number of people injured, saying that it could only be confirmed once officials would sweep the area.
He said that the entire city’s police force had been called to the scene, in addition to the Rangers and the Quick Response Force (QRF). He further said that the attackers had also lobbed hand grenades. He said that the attackers had come “fully prepared” and were putting up a “tough fight”.
Overseas cricket players are currently competing in the Pakistan Super League, and Karachi is one of the host cities. There is a game scheduled for Saturday (tomorrow).
Sindh Health Department’s spokesperson Mehar Khursheed shared a list of the casualties with pressmen, which said four people were brought to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) dead, and 19 injured.
Earlier, Sindh government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab gave a breakdown of the deceased, saying they included two policemen, one Rangers official and one civilian.
TTP claims responsibility
The outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed the attack in a statement issued by its spokesperson Mohammad Khurasani. In 2011, TTP had claimed the attack on PNS Mehran — one of the most densely populated naval bases located in Karachi.
The attack and operation lasted for 17 hours and resulted in the deaths of 10 security personnel. Two US-manufactured surveillance planes were also destroyed during the attack and the ensuing operation.
Three years later, on the night of June 8, 2014, TTP had attacked the Jinnah International Airport of Karachi in which 24 lives were lost and property damaged. The assault on this key installation had far reaching consequences in terms of security at airports and also culminated in the launch of operation Zarb-e-Azb on 15th June, 2014.
The storming of the Karachi police chief’s office comes on the heels of attacks in KP and areas bordering Afghanistan. Since the talks with the TTP broke down in November last year, the militant group has intensified its attacks while insurgents in Balochistan have also stepped up their violent activities and formalised a nexus with the outlawed TTP.
Speaking on today’s attack, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah told Geo News that the government was under the impression that the terrorists did not have access beyond KP and Balochistan. “But now we can see they can reach other cities,” he said.
Immediately after reports had surfaced about the attack, the Sindh CM had taken notice of the situation and directed the relevant DIGs to send personnel from their zones. “I want the perpetrators behind the attack on the additional IG’s office to be arrested,” he said, adding that an attack on the police chief’s office was “not acceptable” at any cost.
The chief minister also sought a report from the officer concerned and said that he was personally monitoring the situation. He also directed Rangers to arrive at the scene.