One woman passenger was killed and two others were injured Tuesday morning when an unknown gunman fired on a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Airbus A310 from the ground as it landed at Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar.
The flight, arriving from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, was just 90 metres off the ground when it was hit by at least 10 bullets from below. One female passenger sustained a fatal head injury while two crew members were also wounded. The injured were rushed to the nearby Peshawar Combined Military Hospital (CMH).
Despite hits in at least one engine and other parts of the fuselage, the aircraft landed safely. PIA confirmed that Flight PK756 was carrying 178 passengers but has not disclosed the number of crew aboard the flight.
The incident is the most recent in a string of attacks on Pakistan’s aviation industry. Only two weeks ago, militants engaged in a firefight at Jinnah International Airport, Pakistan’s largest airport, that left 34 dead. More recently, a riot disrupted operations at Benazir Bhutto International Airport which led to numerous diversions to other airports.
At the moment, it is unclear who is responsible for the terrorist act. Peshawar is located on the edge of the tribal regions where militant groups such as al-Qaeda and the Taliban are based. Dost Muhammad Khan, the station house officer in charge of the area, has initiated a man hunt for the gunman.
This latest attack perpetrated from the perimeter of the airport comes despite heightened security in the wake of the recent terrorist assault. It is not yet known if countries such as Australia which issued a travel advisory after an earlier attack will repeat their warning.
At that time, the Australian embassy issued a statement saying, “We strongly advise you to reconsider your need to travel to Pakistan at this time due to the very high threat of terrorist attack, kidnapping, sectarian violence and the unpredictable security situation.”
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