Sindh CM admits security lapse in Sehwan shrine blast

KARACHI: Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah says investigation into deadly Sehwan shrine bombing reveals security lapses, including non-functioning of some close circuit TV cameras installed at the spot, ARY News reported.

At least 81 people lost their lives in the suicide attack, he confirmed.

Giving policy statement on the deadly tragedy in Sindh Assembly today, the chief minister said police deployment at Lal Shahbaz Qalandar shrine was below strength and attackers exploited it.

Shah said there was no specific security alert about the Shrine being on terrorist hit-list.

The CM said shrine braved load-shedding during dhamaal and moments later the blast ripped through the crowded area. He expressed surprise, saying the power dues had already been cleared by the shrine administration and power outage at that time was incomprehensible. ‘The matter is under investigation,’ he added.

He said the bomber and his facilitators had been identified, adding that the suicide bomber didn’t belong to Sindh.

He said rescue and law enforcement agencies quickly responded after the blast and performed their duties. The CM lamented that it was reported by some sections of the media that no hospital was located within 50 kilometers of the blast site.

It took just a few minutes to ambulances to reach the spot after the blast, he said.

The bombing at the famed Lal Shahbaz Qalandar shrine in Sindh was Pakistan’s deadliest attack for two years, killing at least 81 people and highlighting the threat of militant groups such as the Pakistani Taliban and Islamic State.

A day after the blast, Pakistan authorities demanded that neighboring Afghanistan hand over 76 “terrorists” it said were sheltering over the border.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s foreign policy adviser Sartaj Aziz blamed Jamaat-ur-Ahrar (JuA), a Pakistani Taliban faction that has been linked to Islamic State, for the attack.