Pakistan: Rise in targeted killings, violent street crimes in Peshawar sparks fear among people

Islamabad [Pakistan], June 27 : A sudden increase in targeted killings and violent street crimes in Pakistan's Peshawar have set the alarm bells ringing for the capital city police, Pakistan-based The News International reported.

Many people called for an improved probe into cases of street criminals held during the past many weeks so that the people behind the attacks are brought to book.

The recent incidents have sparked fear among locals and they have called on police for an improved intelligence network and better policies to arrest gangs, The News International reported.

Two Sikh community members have been attacked and there have been a couple of attacks on policemen in the past three weeks in the suburban regions.

The fresh wave of attacks began on Friday with an armed attack on a Sikh trader. The victim identified as Tarlok Singh was shot and injured in Peshawar.

Another Sikh man named Manmohan Singh was attacked in the nearby Guldara, Kakshal on Saturday. Manmohan Singh was taken to hospital but he succumbed to injuries, according to The News International report.

"Manmohan Singh, 34, was on his way home in an auto-rickshaw on Saturday evening when unidentified armed men opened fire on him near Guldara, Kakshal," a spokesman for the capital city police said on Saturday night, according to the report.

The inspector general of police Akhtar Hayat Khan said he has directed the capital city police to arrest the culprits at the earliest.

On Sunday, a police personnel Kamran was attacked in the limits of the Agha Mir Jani Shah police station. He was injured in the attack. Hours after the attack, three policemen - Imran, Tariq and Umair of the Ababeel Squad were injured after armed men opened fire on them on Kohat Road near the Small Industrial Estate around midnight.

One of the alleged attackers was reported to have been injured. Reports claimed that he died later. Some reports claimed that the attack was carried out by robbers, The News International reported.

The police officials said that they have collected CCTV footage, geo-fencing records and other evidence from the regions where the attacks took place in the past few days. Police are said to be working to find the gang or gangs operating in the region.

On Monday, the capital police officials said that the pictures of suspected target killers had been released so the people can help police identify and arrest the two culprits.

Senior police officials have been regularly claiming about busting innumerable gangs of street criminals. However, snatching and shooting incidents witness a rise after every few weeks.

After a brief silence in May, many incidents of robberies and snatching were reported in the past few weeks. In many of the incidents, robbers even did not hesitate to open fire which resulted in many people getting injured, The News International reported.

In recent weeks, a number of people have been shot and injured in many parts of the provincial capital. the report said. Last week, a police constable Umair was injured after an attack by robbers outside the office of the neighbourhood council chairman in Garhi Qamardin.

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