A case has been registered for the kidnapping of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission officials and workers working on a project, but no arrests have been made yet. It should be noted that the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of these individuals. On Thursday morning, 16 people associated with the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission were abducted by unknown persons from a private passenger bus at Qabil Khel in Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A case was registered on Friday on the complaint of SHO Shakeel Khan of Lakki Marwat Police Station Sadar, while efforts have also been started to recover the hostages. Terrorism provisions have also been included in the case registered against unknown terrorists. After the Lakki Marwat incident, an official statement claimed that eight hostages had been rescued. According to the official statement, three people were injured during the operation to recover the hostages and are undergoing treatment at a military hospital, two of whom are in critical condition. On the other hand, the banned militant organization Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) The Pakistani Taliban has rejected claims that eight hostages were rescued in a security operation. In a statement, the militant organization said that the individuals it claims were rescued were released because they were laborers.
According to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the other eight hostages they have are employees of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission who have been transferred to a safe location. According to the militant organization, the hostages were kidnapped to get their demands met and the demands have been conveyed to the government. However, the outlawed TTP did not elaborate on the demands in its statement. According to locals, a vehicle carrying Atomic Energy Commission of Pakistan officials was heading towards Qabul Khel from Lakki Marwat at 8 am on Thursday. Near Wanda Painda Khan, militants of a banned organization took 17 workers off the vehicle and took them with them and set the vehicle on fire. The kidnappers initially took the abductees to the forest near Wanda Painda Khan. The abductees also included retired security force personnel. A few hours before the abduction of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission officials in Lakki Marwat, the Counter-Terrorism Police had killed three militants in Lakki Marwat Gambela district after acting on information from informants against militants of the banned organization.