in the area." Commenting on the TTP militant outfit behind the bombing, Sanaullah added: "We aren't really sure if it is a new group of terrorists. It is the same old organisation working now from Afghanistan, probably since the North and South Waziristans have already been cleared." Bombing The suicide bomber struck the protest in the evening at around 18:10 local time. According to a Counter Terrorism Department official, the perpetrator had traveled by foot as revealed by closed-circuit footage. Soon after the blast, contingents of the Pakistan Army and Rangers were deployed to the site and cordoned off the area near the crowded Mall Road, one of the city's main arteries, as witnesses fled amid fears of a second explosion, with images of the injured being carried away shown by local media.</ref> Forensic teams began collecting evidence to start investigations. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed responsibility for the attack via a text message, calling it revenge for the Pakistani military's counterinsurgency operation against militants holed up in the northwestern tribal areas across the Afghan border. The group had also issued threats three days prior to the attack, stating it would target government installations throughout the country as part of a campaign called "Operation Ghazi". Police personnel were believed to be the primary target. Seven policemen were among those killed, including two senior officers identified as Zahid Gondal, a senior superintendent of the Punjab Police, and Ahmad Mobin, a deputy inspector general of Lahore's Traffic Police. Mobin was seen on television news hours earlier, negotiating with the protesters. The DSNG van of AAJ TV, close to which the bomber had struck, was completely destroyed as a result of the blast. Two more DSNG vans were slightly damaged. Two suspects were taken into custody from the site after security forces placed a security cordon around Charing Cross. The initial investigations suggested that the suicide bomber had three accomplices. According to the police, over six to eight kilogrammes of explosives were used in the blast. In total, at least 18 were killed and over 90 were wounded in the Lahore bombing. In a separate incident later on the same day, an improvised explosive device planted under a bridge in Quetta detonated, killing at least three bomb disposal squad officers who were trying to defuse it. Around eleven others were wounded, one critically, marking an uptick of recent terrorist incidents. Aftermath Following the attack, the injured