Street crimes increasing at alarming rate in Pakistan: Report

Islamabad [Pakistan], April 25 : Street crimes have increased at an alarming rate in Pakistan, said police officials, reported Pak vernacular media.

According to Daily Jang, more than 41 people were killed in street crimes in Karachi during the month of Ramadan. People coming out of banks with cash were the main targets of criminals.

As many as 12 street criminals were also killed in police encounters while 17 got injured. There were almost 300 cases of street crimes on a daily basis.

Another report by Daily Jung says that in the B Police operation, the ringleaders of the Sajiv Gang and Chata gang were arrested along with their accomplices, involved in street crimes. Stolen cash and weapons used in the crimes were also recovered from their possession.

Not only street crimes but also terrorist attacks are on a rise in different areas of Pakistan. Two explosions rocked a counterterrorism facility in northwest Pakistan - Swat's Kabal on Monday, killing at least 12 policemen and injuring more than 40 people, reported Geo News.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General of Police Akhtar Hayat Khan said security officials were on high alert throughout the province.

Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) DIG Khalid Sohail told Geo News that the blast was not a suicide attack.

"There was no attack or firing on the police station. The explosion occurred at a place where ammunition and mortar shells were stored," he added.

He further said that the cause of the explosion whether negligence or something else was being investigated. Bomb disposal squads were also conducting an investigation, he added.

Sohail earlier said two explosions had occurred and the building that collapsed was an old one while most offices and personnel were located in a newer building, reported Geo News.

Meanwhile, the provincial health department imposed a state of emergency at hospitals in Swat.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the blast. He expressed grief over the lives lost and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured, reported Geo News.

He also directed authorities to submit a report regarding the incident, according to Radio Pakistan.

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah condemned the blast and expressed sadness over the lives lost. "This scourge of terrorism will be uprooted soon," he asserted.

Two attacks on large police bases have been linked to the Pakist Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) since the start of the year.

In January, a suicide bomber detonated his vest in a mosque inside a police compound in the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing more than 80 officers as the building collapsed and rained down rubble on worshippers, reported Al Jazeera.

The following month, five were killed when a TTP suicide squad stormed a police compound in the southern port city of Karachi, prompting an hours-long shootout.

Since the Taliban seized control of Afghstan, Pakistan has witnessed a dramatic uptick in attacks focused on its border regions with the country. Islamabad says offensives are being launched from Afghan soil, reported Al Jazeera.

Moreover, Pakistan saw a rise in terror attacks after a shaky six-month ceasefire between the TTP and Islamabad failed in November.