Two officials killed in car bomb targeting Rangers HQ, 14 injured - The Express Tribune

Suicide bomber in mini truck laden with around 150kg of explosives barged into Rangers headquarters before exploding. PHOTO: REUTERS

KARACHI: A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden pickup truck into the gate of Sachal Rangers Headquarters in North Nazimabad Block B area of Karachi on Thursday, causing a huge blast that killed two Rangers personnel and wounded at least 26 people.

"An explosives-laden vehicle rammed into the gate of the residential area of the complex and hit its wall. A total of 21 Rangers have been injured in the attack this morning," a Rangers spokesman told AFP.

The deceased Rangers personnel were identified as Lance Naik Khalid Mahmood and Sepoy Abdul Razzaq.

IG Sindh Fayyaz Leghari confirmed that it was a suicide blast. He added that a mini truck had been used in the attack.

DIG West Javed Odho as saying that around 150kg of explosives were used in the blast.

According to Express News correspondent Wasiq Muhammad, the powerful explosion destroyed the vehicle and severely damaged the building's two storied structure, a section of which has collapsed. Parts of the building had caught fire, which the fire brigade put out.

He added that the dead and injured were shifted to Abbasi Shaheed hospital. Of the injured, five were civilians and the rest were Rangers personnel.

Muhammad added that most of those injured were in critical condition and are being given medical treatment. He added that doctors had removed ball bearings in addition to metal fragments from some of the injured.

One of the injured Rangers' personnel Mohammad Farooq narrated that the security personnel had just sat down after offering their morning prayers at around 6:30 am when the explosion took place.

Another Rangers personnel Anwar while talking to Express News said that as he was getting ready for the duty, he saw that a mini truck came crashing inside the headquarters' vicinity and rammed into a tree nearby and exploded.

Emergency services have reached the spot and are conducting a rescue operation. The area has been cordoned off by security officials.

A suspicious person was also reportedly arrested from the immediate vicinity of the Rangers headquarters soon after the blast.

The blast was powerful enough to be heard for miles around and a big mushroom cloud rose high into the sky.