Pak Taliban Attack Karachi Airport, At Least 27 Killed

The Pak army had cleared the Karachi airport siege after Taliban militants attacked the airport on Sunday around midnight. At least 27 people lost their lives in the attack. Although the authorities declared that the area was ‘cleared,’ a news agency reporter witnessed fresh gunfire inside the airport, prompting security forces to re-launch the operation.

The terrorist attack on Jinnah International Airport in Karachi took place around midnight on Sunday and went on till dawn. Ten terrorists, equipped with suicide vests, grenades and rocket launchers, were involved in the attack.

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was its revenge for the killing of its leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone strike in November 2013. The TTP also rejected the Pakistan government’s recent offer of peace and warned of more attacks in the future.

“We carried out this attack on the Karachi airport and it is a message to the Pakistan government that we are still alive to react to the killings of innocent people in bomb attacks on their villages,” said Shahidullah Shahid, a Taliban spokesperson.

According to officials, the gunmen entered from two sides of the airport – the terminal used for the Hajj pilgrimage and an engineering section near an old terminal that is no longer in use. According to media reports, three blasts took place as suicide bombers detonated their explosives.

The attack raises serious concerns over Pakistan’s security situation.