Pakistan launches much-awaited operation in South Punjab

Operat­ion being conducted by civil, military law enforcement agencies agains­t 'harden­ed crimin­als &...

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army launched on Wednesday the much-awaited targeted operation against militant outfits in Southern Punjab, days after the deadliest attack in Lahore’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal park.

The military’s media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has confirmed the launch of coordinated operation in South Punjab.

At least 72 people were killed and more than 233 injured when a suicide bomb ripped through the parking space of a crowded park in Lahore where Christians were celebrating Easter on March 27, 2016.



The operation is being carried out by civil and military law enforcement agencies, including Rangers, police and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) against 'hardened criminal and ferraris’, it has been learnt.

"These terrorists flee from different parts of the country as a result of successful operations Zarb-e-Azb and took refuge in remote areas of Rohjan, Kache in district Rahim Yaar Khan,” an ISPR statement said.

The confirmation of coordinated operation by civil and military authorities suggested that standoff between the government and army on how to pursue operation in Punjab is now over.



The deadlock appears to be ended after a recent flurry of high-level exchanges between the civil and military leadership.

Earlier this week, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan met COAS General Raheel Sharif to discuss the Punjab operation.