KARACHI: Three paramilitary personnel and three terrorists died during an attack on local headquarters of Pakistan’s Sindh Rangers in Karachi’s Gulistan-i-Jauhar locality on Saturday, the Sindh police chief told Dawn.

Sindh Inspector General Javed Alam Odho said that the terrorists had rammed the main gate with their vehicle and initially they could not confirm whether a blast had also occurred.

Odho further said, according to Dawn, that a “mopping-up operation” was underway and that the area had been sealed by Special Security Unit (SSU) commandos, Anti-Terrorist Force (ATF) and rangers personnel.

Police Surgeon Summaiya Syed told Dawn that one injured paramilitary trooper was brought to the hospital after sustaining gunshot wounds on the leg.

Earlier, law enforcers rushed to the incident site after heavy firing and an explosion were reported in the area, as per Dawn. The general area was also sealed by the police.

Rescue 1122 Sindh said it had received reports of an explosion near Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 5 and immediately dispatched teams to the scene from its central command and control centre.

An affiliate of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar – a splinter armed group of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as the Pakistani Taliban – claimed responsibility for the attack late on Saturday, Al Jazeera reported.

The group said that nine attackers took part in the attack. It comes as Pakistan’s security forces are being targeted across the country, as per Al Jazeera.

Earlier on February 7, the United States Embassy in Pakistan had issued a security alert for American citizens following reports of a suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in the Tarlai Kalan area on the outskirts of Islamabad.

At least 31 people have died, with 169 injured, after a suicide bombing at an Imambargah in Islamabad during Friday prayers, according to a report by Dawn citing the authorities.

According to Dawn, the explosion occurred at the Imambargah Khadijah-tul-Kubra in the Tarlai area on Friday.

It further noted that the Minister of State for Interior, Tallal Chaudhry, told the media in Islamabad that while the attacker was not an Afghan, authorities had been able to determine through forensic tests the number of times he had travelled to Afghanistan. (ANI)