ISLAMABAD: Two naval personnel were killed and 10 other people injured in an abortive suicide attack on the Pakistan Naval Complex on Wednesday afternoon.

The teenaged suicide bomber blew himself up when he was intercepted by a naval intelligence official, Amjad, metres away from the gate, an official said.

Amjad asked him to stop for identification. After getting no response, the official approached the suspect and tried to search him. He and the attacker were killed and five personnel of the navy and the army, a colonel among them, and six civilians were injured. Constable Ashraf of the Navy police who was injured, later died in hospital.

The main gate of the Naval Complex is near the World Food Programme office where a suicide attack on Oct five had killed five UN workers. It is also near the home of President Asif Ali Zardari.

A witness, Haseeb Asif who is a student, told Dawn that he had stopped at a traffic light on the Margalla Road, near the Naval Complex, when he spotted a silver Cultus car stop across the road and a youth wearing white clothes and a coat rush towards the complex. The youth then went towards the entrance of the complex and blew himself up.

A taxi driver said the suspect was talking in an unfamiliar language and appeared to be a foreigner.

Police officials said the attacker was probably an Uzbek.

Some witnesses said a yellow vehicle had dropped two people on the Kohistan Road and moved on. One of the men identified the complex and walked towards the Faisal Avenue, while the other approached the target and blew himself up.

Officials of police and navy said the bomber had been spotted standing at the place a few minutes before the blast.

He was also seen moving around the traffic signal twice or thrice. When he moved towards the complex, the guard told him that as the gate was closed, he should use another entrance.

Moments later, he blew himself up.

Officials were of the view that a school and a college inside the complex were the target, besides navy personnel.

The attacker had arrived at about 1.20pm, a time when the school’s section closes. But for some reason, the bell was not rung till 1.45pm, making the bomber desperate to enter the premises, officials said.

A navy official said the main entrance of the complex had been closed after receiving a threat a month ago and only official vehicles with security stickers, officials on foot and students were allowed to enter.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (Operation) Bani Amin said the terrorist had used a suicide jacket with 8kgs of explosives, pellets, ball bearings and shrapnel.

The suspect was 14 to 16 years old and of fair complexion, the DIG said.

He said the silver car mentioned by a witness belonged to a passer-by who had picked his son from school.

He said limbs of the bomber had been found and his head had been reconstructed, but it was not possible to make out the face.

Navy’s Capt Mobeen Bajwa told reporters that the attacker had tried to enter the complex.

Another official said Naval chief Noman Bashir was in the headquarters at the time of the attack.

President Zardari condemned the attack and said such incidents would not lessen the government’s resolve to fight terrorism and extremism.

AFP adds: Capt Bajwa, the navy spokesman, said security guards stopped the bomber after a taxi driver complained about his suspicious behaviour.