Izharul Hassan, police officers, FBR security guards targeted by same group

Meeting at Rangers Headquarters reviews law and order situation in Karachi

KARACHI: Rangers officials confirmed in a meeting on Tuesday that Ansarul Shariah Pakistan (ASP) was behind the attempted assassination of Leader of Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Khawaja Izharul Hassan and the other recent high profile killings in Karachi. The paramilitary force vowed that operations against the absconding militants of the ASP will continue in Sindh and Balochistan.

The meeting was held at the Rangers Headquarters and was chaired by Sindh Rangers Director-General (DG) Major General Muhammad Saeed. Sindh Inspector-General (IG) of Police Allah Dino Khawaja and other senior intelligence and police officials attended the meeting to monitor the situation following the attack on Hassan.

According to a Rangers spokesperson, the Rangers, Karachi police, Counter-Terrorism Department and other intelligence agencies started joint investigations after the attack and succeeded in tracing the location of ASP commander Abdul Karim Sarosh who was hiding at Rufi Rose Petal Bungalows in Kaniz Fatima Society. Although, Sarosh managed to escape during the raid, the law enforcement agencies seized laptops, mobile phones and other materials from the hideout which confirmed that the group was involved in attacking Hassan and other high profile killings in the provincial capital.



Forensic reports of the pistols used in the attempted assassination of Hassan have confirmed that the same group was involved in the killings of four policemen in SITE area, traffic DSP killing in Azizabad, killing of two security guards of the FBR Regional office in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, targeted attack on police volunteers on Northern Bypass and attack on police mobile van in Dhoraji Society.