Two policemen, a private guard of an SHO, and a private photographer working with police were killed in an anti-bandit operation while attempting to recover kidnapped victims in the Garhi Tegho area of Shikarpur district on Sunday. Seven other policemen, including two SHOs, were also injured in the confrontation between the police and the bandits.
What Happened: While engaged in an operation in Garhi Tegho for the recovery of kidnap victims, including truck drivers Naqeebullah Pathan and Inayat Pathan, the police launched the operation along with an armored personnel carrier (APC) but the bandits fired shots of anti-aircraft guns on the APC from close range. This damaged the APC and killed the four people, including two policemen, present inside the APC. Three of the deceased were identified as constables Munawar Jatoi and Jehanzeb Ujjan and photographer Haseeb Sheikh, and the private guard of SHO Muzamil Soomro, whose name was not revealed. The injured, including SHOs Muzamil Soomro and Zahid Abro and policemen Sarwar Kori, Sajjad Chandio, Saeed Mahar, Asadullah Pahore, and Imran Soomro, were taken to hospital.
“The casualties seem to be the result of planning and tactical errors by police,” a police source said. https://t.co/uwjMcGG5Wj
— Dawn.com (@dawn_com) May 24, 2021
The Context: According to reports, the bandits had recently kidnapped eight people from Shikarpur and kept them in the riverine area of Garhi Tegho. The police had reached the area following an agreement with the bandits who conceded to hand over the hostages to police in return for the release of their female relatives who had been picked up by the police in order to pressurize the criminals.