Taliban's 'Terror Thursday' leaves 26 dead in Lahore

Lahore, Oct.15 (ANI): At least 26 persons were killed including 16 security personnel, eight militants and two civilians in three different terror attacks that rocked Lahore on Thursday.

Less than a week after the brazen commando style terror raid on the Pakistan Army General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, armed gunmen unleashed a reign of terror in Lahore targeting three separate security installations in the city, the Federal Investigation Agency building, the Manawan Police Training Academy, and the Elite Police Center.

The 'chained' attacks, as they were referred to by Interior Minister Rehman Malik, threw Lahore into chaos early Thursday morning.

In the first attack on the FIA building, five to six gunmen stormed into the building premises and took several hostages.

After an intense gun battle, security forces managed to free all the hostages, and killed two militants there.

This was the second terror attack on the FIA building in the last year and a half.

At least 24 people, including 13 FIA officials were killed and over 200 were injured when two bombs ripped through the FIA building and an another building in March 2008.

Soon after the officials announced the FIA building siege to be over, a second band of gunmen raided the Manawan Police Training Academy on the outskirts of the city in which five police officers and four militants were killed, The Dawn reports.

This was the second terror attack on the academy this year. Militants had launched a similar attack in March that sparked an eight-hour standoff with the army that left 12 people dead.

The third attack took place at the Bedian Road Center of the Elite Police Force. About eight gunmen scaled the wall of the training center and started firing indiscriminately. Militants also lobbed several hand grenades inside the training center premises.

The three synchronized attacks clearly highlights that the Pakistan Taliban is determined to spread its rein of terror despite the death of their leader, Baitullah Mehsud in an US drone strike in August this year.

In another incident, at least ten people were reportedly killed and 15 others injured in a powerful bomb blast outside a police station in Kohat.

The blast occurred when a suicide attacker rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the Sadar Police Station building killing ten people on the spot.

Media reports said that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has claimed the responsibility for all the terror incidents, however, but the same could not be confirmed till reports last came in. (ANI)