my workplace

7^th january – major assault on field by local tribesmen. rockets/mortars used.

11^th january – another major assault on entrance check post. attempt to capture the field.

24^th april – zubair reporting views of different employees:

 

asif --  “… on 7^th january, at 8:30 in the night, we were watching tv in the lounge when we heard an explosion at quite some distance from us. we ignored that explosion as it was turning out to be an everyday routine, but very soon, the deafening sound of fire erupting like a volcano from a high pressure gas pipe started shaking our mess windows and doors vehemently. we knew this was the end of the plant.”

 

khalil -- “… i was looking at the monitoring gauges in the control room, and i heard a loud boom. suddenly the warning bell started indicating falling pressures in main gas pipe line. i knew what i had to do then, i stood up, took my tool box, and ran towards the fire in the main gas line to cut down the gas supply. i could see mortars … and hear the bullets … it was hell!”

 

haseeb -- “ … soon after the first rocket hit the plant and caused massive fire, we were shaken.  but we calmed ourselves on the thought that today’s rocket quota is complete (1~2 rockets / day).  but attackers had different intentions, they had launched a massive attack on the whole field.  projectiles kept coming from 8:30PM ~ 11:30PM.  some people say about 400 rockets/mortars were fired that night.  bullets were being sprayed.  we could hear the rockets whizzing above our mess roofs and mortars falling on grounds and buildings adjacent to us.  we all gathered in the tv lounge and prepared ourselves for death!”

 

zahid – “ … immediately me and my wife took out the holy quran and started reciting it.  we just didn’t know what to do. i heard a very loud explosion, a mortar had just dropped nearby.  i closed the quran, and asked my wife to pack up expensive items and be prepared to run. she stood up from the chair, and moved towards the cupboard… right at that moment, a mortar dropped on our room’s roof!  we didn’t know what happened, but we both hit the walls with impact!  when the dust cloud settled, we stood up… very luckily we both had survived and hadn’t suffered a minute scratch! the roof had a huge crater, the roof fan was destroyed, and our stuff beneath the point of impact had been destroyed, our tv and other stuff had been severely damaged from the splinters of the bomb.  yet, we both didn’t even get a scratch!!”

 

amjad -- “ … first, you hear a small explosion from a distance, then you hear the typical whistle like sound of the ascending bomb, and then you hear a large boom!  as soon as we heard the small explosion, we got our beads/tasbeeh in our hands and started praying that this mortar doesn’t hit us!”

 

arshad -- “ … i wasn’t afraid on 7^th january (when the plant was rocketed), really! what scared me was the rumors on 11^th january that they have infiltrated into the compound and are target killing everybody here! this is what made me crap in my pants!”

 

zubair – “HOLY SHIT!”