Nine people were martyred and 32 injured after terrorists attacked the student hostel inside the Directorate of Agriculture Extension on University Road, Peshawar early Friday morning.
The security forces later managed to kill all the terrorists after launching an operation.
SSP Operations Sajjad Khan
SSP Operations Sajjad Khan told that five attackers wearing suicide jackets reached the compound in a rickshaw.
They were said to be wearing burqas in the rickshaw so as to avoid detection.
The police official said the attackers' first target was the security guard of the premises, following which they made their way inside towards the students' hostel.
"They could have wreaked havoc but the police and army successfully neutralised the threat," he said further.
The police and army immediately reached the site and launched an operation to clear the area and neutralise the terrorists.
Aerial surveillance of the operation was carried out by the army aviation division whereas armoured vehicles of security forces were also on site.
Peshawar Capital City Police Officer Tahir Khan and SSP Operations Sajjad Khan were leading the operation.
Intermittent gunfire and blasts could be heard from inside the premises throughout the operation.
Speaking to media Khyber Pakhtunkhwa IG Salahuddin Khan Mehsud said fortunately not many students were present due to the long weekend, adding that police APCs evacuated around a dozen students from the hostel.
"Special units of the Pakistan Army were taking part in the operation [alongside police]," he said further.
A clearance and sweeping operation is now under way.
University Road, the major artery of the city, was closed down for traffic.
The injured were shifted to Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH), located next to the directorate.
An emergency was declared in the hospital. The hospital's spokesperson, Dr Saud, initially said a total of 11 injured were brought to the hospital.
He added that the injured included seven students, two military personnel, a police officer and a journalist. The wounded are said to have been injured in firing as well as hurting themselves while escaping the attack.
However, later, the casualties were said to be 11 dead and nine injured, including five security personnel.
'We were sleeping when it started'
The eyewitness, a student, said he and his colleagues ran as fast as they could but two of their colleagues were injured in the firing.
"We took them out with us and admitted them to the hospital," said Ariful Haq, adding that around 120 students live in the hostel but most had gone home due to the long weekend.
He added that the students who board at the premises are undertaking their diplomas in Agriculture Sciences and Veterinary Sciences.
Moreover, the premises houses offices of the Agriculture Directorate Extension, Agriculture Livestock Department, Peshawar Housing Authority and the office of the director general of agriculture.
All terrorists killed: ISPR
According to the army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), all the terrorists were killed in the operation.
Eight students were evacuated from the hostel, the ISPR said in a statement.
The army said two of its injured were evacuated to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).
KP Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra
KP Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra told that the terrorists today came prepared to stage a bigger attack than they were able to execute.
He condemned the terror attack on Eid Miladun Nabi. "Who can commit such an attack on this day?" he asked. "This action is against our religion. It proves that those who do such things really are terrorists."
"At least 80 per cent terrorism has been eradicated under Operation Raddul Fasaad. They [terrorists] are attacking soft targets trying to show their presence," the KP governor said.
"The public needs to stay alert and inform the army and police of suspicious individuals," he added.
'Attack happened suddenly: KP CM
Chief Minister Peshawar Pervaiz Khattak said that although the KP police is "always alert, this incident happened suddenly".
"The police arrived and took control... Security measures have been taken keeping Eid Miladun Nabi in view. Our police was there soon after the firing started."
"Right now we are facing difficult circumstances."
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan tweeted his condemnation of the terror attack.
He commended "the rapid response of the KP police and army that helped in containing [the] damage and concluding the operation".
"The reformed professional KP police force with its special rapid response unit has made a difference in dealing with acts of terrorism in a timely, holistic and coordinated manner," he added.
Second attack in a week
Last Friday, senior police official Mohammad Ashraf Noor was martyred in a suicide attack in the Hayatabad area of the city.
Additional IG Headquarters Ashraf Noor was en route to work when a suicide bomber riding a motorcycle rammed into his vehicle near Tatara Park.
Students in the line of fire
On December 16, 2014, 147 people, including 132 schoolchildren, were massacred in one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the country’s history when terrorists stormed the Army Public School in Peshawar Cantonment and opened indiscriminate fire.
Later, on January 20, 2016, 21 students and staff members of Bacha Khan University in Charsadda were martyred after terrorists stormed the university and opened fire.
