Khyber Paktunkhwa Inspector-General Moazzam Jah Ansari says nobody will be allowed to play with the peace and security of the province.
He was addressing on Thursday a press conference about the status of the investigation into the horrific January 30 Peshawar suicide bomb blast at a mosque inside a highly sensitive police headquarters which claimed over 100 lives.
The attack took place during afternoon worship. An entire wall and some of its roof was blown out. Bloodied survivors emerged limping from the wreckage, while bodies were ferried away in ambulances.
The police headquarters in Peshawar is in one of the most tightly controlled areas of the city, housing intelligence and counter-terrorism bureaus, and is next door to the regional secretariat.
“Terrorists want to create fear by targeting those who perform the duty of defending Pakistan,” said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had said in a statement after the blast.
The drastic security breach came on the day United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan had been due to visit Islamabad, although the trip was cancelled at the last minute due to bad weather.
The security situation in Pakistan has deteriorated since the return of the Afghan Taliban in Kabul. Islamabad has accused the new rulers of failing to secure their mountainous border, allowing militants to travel back and forth without being detected.
During Thursday’s presser, the KP IG shared that the police was “closing in” on the terror network behind the suicide attack. The police has acquired closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage of the bomber. It shows the bomber “clad in a police uniform” and face mask and riding a motorcycle.
He shared that the Police Lines did not check the bomber as they thought “he was their own”.
This is a developing story and is being updated with more detail.