Swat blasts: CTD inital report blames short circuit as no evidence of terror attack

The death toll in the two explosions at Swat’s Counter Terrorism Department station ammunition depot rose from 12 to 16 overnight by Tuesday, with the police suspecting it was related to an ammunition accident.

“No evidence of an attack from outside has been found,” the police claimed in the preliminary investigation report prepared after the blast rocked CTD police station in Swat's Kabal a day earlier.

The police confirmed that at least 16 people were martyred and more than 40 people were injured due to the explosion and are currently under treatment.

“There is a high possibility that the blast was caused by a short circuit as fire erupted in the armoury [a place where weapons are kept],” the police report stated.

CTD DIG Khalid Sohail, while speaking to media persons, said that ammunition caught fire due to negligence. He revealed that the incident took place in the old office of the CTD.

He also ruled out the possibility that the explosions were suicide attacks or other acts of terrorism.

"There was a store where we had a huge quantity of weapons, and until now we believe that there might have been some blast in it due to some carelessness," he said.

Sohail said the shock waves caused "the complete collapse of the building".

Meanwhile, the work of removing the debris is underway as nearby buildings, including mosques, houses, school walls and roofs also collapsed due to the explosion.

Among the martyrs, four were civilians while 12 were policemen. The hospital administration said that 10 out of the 40 people injured are in critical condition.

Sources within the police said that a two-member committee had been formed to investigate the munitions blasts at the CTD police station. The body includes Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Home Secretary Abid Majeed and the Special Branch deputy inspector general.

Sources said that the committee has been directed to submit a report by completing the probe as soon as possible.

Following the blast, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Inspector General Akhtar Hayat Gandapur said: "A series of two to three bomb explosions occurred. He added that "the majority of the victims" were policemen.

Footage from the site showed a body being stretchered from the rubble as a smattering of small fires blazed in the darkness.

On Twitter, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif initially described Monday’s blasts as a "suicide attack".

"Our police has been the first line of defence against terrorism," he tweeted.

Late at night, he tweeted an update saying "The nature of the blast is being investigated".