Pakistani air force base stormed
Officials suspect Islamist militants
KARACHI, PAKISTAN — Suspected Islamist militants attacked a major Pakistani air force base where nuclear weapons are thought to be stored, setting off a heavy gun battle Thursday in which eight attackers and one security official were killed.
The attack on the Minhas air force base in Kamra, northwest of the capital, Islamabad, was a stark reminder of the militants’ determination to attack Pakistan’s most sensitive installations despite ongoing military operations in their tribal hideouts.
The sprawling airbase, in the Attock district of Punjab, is believed to be one of the locations where elements of Pakistan’s nuclear stockpile, estimated to include at least 100 warheads, are stored. It is also home to a variety of warplanes, including U.s.-built F-16s, and contains a factory that makes JF-17 fighter jets in conjunction with China.
The assault came amid mounting speculation that Pakistan’s military was preparing to carry out an operation in the militant stronghold of North Waziristan, in the tribal belt, a long-standing demand of the U.S.
Security officials said the gunmen, who were armed with automatic weapons and grenade launchers, and had explosives strapped to their bodies, attacked Minhas at about 2 a.m. A two-hour battle with soldiers stationed on the base damaged an aircraft hangar and one warplane inside, the officials said.
An air force spokesperson said the base commander, Air Commodore Muhammad Azam, was wounded in the shoulder during the fight.
Kamra has been attacked three times before. In 2007, a suicide bomber hit a bus near the entrance to the Minhas airbase; in 2008, militants fired rockets into the base; and in 2009, a suicide bomber riding a bicycle blew himself up on an approach road.