On 16 August 2015, two suspected suicide bombers detonated explosives at the home office of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
Interior Minister
Shuja Khanzada
Shuja Khanzada ( ur, ; 28 August 1943 – 16 August 2015) was a Pakistani politician and Pakistan Army colonel, who served as the Home Minister of Punjab from 2014 until his assassination on 16 August 2015.
As an army officer, Khanzada f ...
in the
Attock District village of
Shadikhan, from the
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
i capital of
Islamabad
Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital ...
. The blasts killed the minister and 18 other people; at least 17 people were injured and taken to hospitals.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi
The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ; ur, ) or "Army of Jhangvi", is a Deobandi Sunni supremacist, terrorist and jihadist militant organisation based in Afghanistan. The organisation operates in Pakistan and Afghanistan and is an offshoot of anti-Shi ...
(LeJ), a
Deobandi militant group with ties to
Al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack,
and it was later determined that
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan
The Pakistani Taliban (), formally called the Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (Urdu/ ps, , lit=Student Movement of Pakistan, TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani bo ...
was also involved.
Attack
On Sunday, 16 August 2015, 71-year-old Shuja Khanzada was meeting with relatives and friends at his home office in the village of
Shadikhan to condole the death of a relative who had died in the United Kingdom, when the attack was perpetrated by two men strapped with a combined of explosives. According to the initial investigation, the bombers' intent was to collapse the building. The first bomber entered Khanzada's home office, shook his hand and detonated the device while standing next to one of the pillars on the veranda. It is believed a second bomber, standing on the street next to the building, then detonated his explosives, causing the building to collapse
when the roof of the house caved in, trapping an unknown number of people under the rubble.
Investigation
According to a preliminary investigation, the attack may have been retaliation for the killing of
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi
The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ; ur, ) or "Army of Jhangvi", is a Deobandi Sunni supremacist, terrorist and jihadist militant organisation based in Afghanistan. The organisation operates in Pakistan and Afghanistan and is an offshoot of anti-Shi ...
militant leader
Malik Ishaq
Malik Ishaq ( ur, ; 1959 – 29 July 2015) was a Pakistani militant, and leader of globally designated Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).
Formerly a member of anti-Shia militant group Sipah-e-Sahaba, Ishaq co-founded the LeJ in 1996. Under Ishaq's ...
by the
Punjab Police.
Later investigation by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of the
Punjab Police and
Inter-Services Intelligence
The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...
determined that the terrorist group
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan
The Pakistani Taliban (), formally called the Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (Urdu/ ps, , lit=Student Movement of Pakistan, TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani bo ...
was also involved. On 1 October, CTD raided a house in
Iqbal Town, Lahore
Allama Iqbal (Urdu, pnb, ) is an administrative zone in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries a ...
, killing four people suspected of being involved in the bombing.
In September 2015, one suspect, Qasim Muavia, was arrested. Two years later in August 2017, the Punjab government transferred his trial to military court, stating that civilian court was taking too long. An additional suspect was arrested in March 2016, and in October 2017, one more suspect was killed during a confrontation with police.
The attack was strongly condemned throughout the country, including by Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif
Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime minister of Pak ...
and Chief of Army Staff General
Raheel Shareef
General Raheel Sharif (Urdu: ; born 16 June 1956), is a retired four-star army general of the Pakistan Army who served as the 9th Chief of Army Staff from 29 November 2013 to 29 November 2016. After his retirement as Pakistan's army chief, h ...
.
International reactions
The attack was condemned by international leaders, including
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon, who called for justice against those who planned the attack.
The United States also condemned the attack and offered to assist with the investigation. The
U.S. Embassy in Islamabad issued a statement, saying, "We support Pakistan's determination to bring to justice those behind the attack and are prepared to provide assistance, if requested, to government authorities investigating this reprehensible act."
See also
*
Targeted killings in Pakistan
Targeted killings in Pakistan (Urdu: نشانی قاتلوں or ہدفی ہلاکتو) have been a rising form of violence and have contributed to security instability in the country. They have become common and have gained attention especiall ...
*
Terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2015
This is a List of terrorist incidents in Pakistan since 2001, list of terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2015.
January
9 January – Time bomb in drainpipe explosion killed at least eight people took place near Imambargah Aun Muhammad Rizvi ...
*
List of terrorist incidents, 2015
This is a list of terrorist incidents which took place in 2015, including attacks by violent non-state actors for political motives. Note that terrorism related to drug wars and cartel violence is not included in these lists. Ongoing military conf ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Attock bombing
2015 murders in Pakistan
21st-century mass murder in Pakistan
2015 murders in Asia
Attacks in Pakistan in 2015
Attock District
August 2015 crimes in Asia
August 2015 events in Pakistan
Islamic terrorist incidents in 2015
Mass murder in 2015
Terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2015
Explosions in 2015
Assassinations in Pakistan