ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that the perpetrators involved in the Dasu attack wanted to sabotage Pakistan-China friendly relations; however, their nefarious designs were foiled as a thorough investigation was carried into the incident and the Chinese are fully satisfied with its progress.
Apprising the media representatives about details of the Dasu attack investigation in a press conference in Islamabad on Thursday, the foreign minister said that the probe has been completed and all the details have been shared with the Chinese Officials.
The minister said that a Chinese delegation was also taken to the incident site, and they were completely satisfied with the investigation.
Qureshi told that more than 1,000 workers associated with the construction of the Dasu hydropower project were brought under investigation. He said that the explosive-laden vehicle which was used in the blast has been identified.
The foreign minister said that the Diamer-Bhasha dam was the primary target but the attackers failed to achieve their objective.
Shah Mahmood said that 36 CCTV Cameras covering 1,400 kilometers area were analyzed in the investigation.
The minister told that from the incident site, thumb, finger, and a few other parts of the suicide bomber’s body were found. In addition, telephones were also found from the site, and their data was forensically examined.
The foreign minister told reporters that the Afghan territory was used to carry out the Dasu attack. He said that Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) and India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) were involved in the attack.
The Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the enemies couldn’t digest the growing Pak-China friendship; therefore, they wanted to create rifts in their bilateral ties.
Qureshi said that both Pakistan and China have decided that their all-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership will continue and even further be expanded.
The foreign minister said that all China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects will continue and be completed within the stipulated time. He said that it has also been decided to further beef up the security of the CPEC-related projects.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi reaffirmed the resolve that all culprits involved in the incident will be exposed and taken to task.
The minister said that the Afghan government must also extend full cooperation to Pakistan in apprehending the perpetrators and bringing them to justice.
Sharing further details about the investigation, the DIG Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Javed Iqbal told reporters that the vehicle used in the blast was smuggled into Pakistan via the Chaman border and brought in Swat in November 2020.
The DIG CTD KPK Javed Iqbal told that in total, 14 persons were involved in the Dasu bus attack, and an Afghan named Tariq affiliated with the outlawed Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) brought the suicide bomber into the blast site.
Javed Iqbal said that the investigation found that the suicide bomber was named Khalid alias Sheikh, and he was an Afghan.
Javed Iqbal also told that three facilitators of the Dasu attack have been arrested. He said that NDS and RAW fully assisted the attackers.
The DIG CTD KPK demanded the Afghan government to hand over the facilitators of the Dasu blast to Pakistan.
