A loud explosion that rang out across the metropolis today evening sending the residents panicking was in fact a controlled explosion of loads of explosives removed from suicide bombing vests seized in a recent raid by the paramilitary troops.
“Rangers disabled the improvised explosive devices (IEDs) recovered in Orangi Town raid yesterday by detonating them in an abandoned area. The boom that was heard from North Karachi to Sohrab Goth was generated by that blast,” A spokeswoman for the Rangers told the media.
The explosion was heard shortly around 08:00 PM local time.
A controlled explosion is a method for detonating or disabling a suspected explosive device. Another classic method of controlled explosion is to place the suspected bomb in an object and fill it with sand before detonating it with a self-incendiary device or a fuse.
Meanwhile, seven militants who were plotting rocket, grenade and suicide attacks in Karachi were killed in two raids by Rangers.
The raids, which began Monday night and continued Tuesday morning, also saw the recovery of a major cache of weapons and explosives.
Police and rangers since 2013 have been carrying out a major cleanup operation in the city which has reduced the level of violent crime.
The first took place in the Mominabad shanty town in the city’s west and was met by fierce resistance, according to a statement by the rangers.
It said four militants were killed, including one who blew himself up, while another was arrested.
Automatic weapons, about 16 kilograms (35 pounds) of explosives, suicide vests containing seven kilograms of explosives and 500 kilograms of metal nuts and bolts were recovered from the hideout.
“There were authentic intelligence reports that the terrorists were plotting to use the explosives to carry out a big terrorist attack in Karachi,” the statement said.
Three more militants including another suicide bomber who blew himself up were killed in a second raid today morning, the statement said. One ranger was injured.
The rangers recovered rockets, six suicide vests, rifles, automatic weapons, 60 kilograms of explosives and three improvised explosive devices.
Last June ten Taliban militants lay siege to Karachi airport, killing 27 people. The military responded by launching a major offensive called Operation Zerb-e-Azb in the North Waziristan tribal district, considered a stronghold of the terrorists.
Two weeks ago gunmen stormed a bus carrying members of the Shiite Ismaili (agha Khani) community, killing 45 people in the first attack in the country officially claimed by the Islamic State group.
The perpetrators of the attack were quickly apprehended.
