Mastermind of Peshawar attack was arrested last year

Security agencies kept constant tabs on the terrorist group since last December

PESHAWAR:

Intelligence officials had arrested the mastermind of the terrorist group that orchestrated Friday’s Kocha Risaldar attack last year and kept constant tabs on the group’s activities in the country, sources said on Monday.

The group first registered an alarm in the intelligence radar during its attempts to launch an assault on last year’s Christmas celebrations – an attack that was successfully averted after strict measures were put in place on the prior information obtained from the mastermind under the custody.
The group’s motive behind the attack was to discredit the country’s global image, the officials privy to the developments shared, adding that security agencies had been looking out for the suicide bomber since December.

“Intelligence officials were everywhere — as per information of the man under security officials’ captivity — but the bomber reached directly to the handler after coming from Afghanistan,” the official told The Express Tribune. During the interrogation, the accused had revealed that a suicide bomber had arrived in Pakistan for an attack in Peshawar during the Christmas celebrations on December 25.
On Friday the suicide attack at Kocha Risaldar mosque left 63 dead and dozens more injured.

The attack is the biggest sectarian-motivated incident of its kind in the history of the city. In the past two other Imambargah in Chamkani and Hayatabad were attacked by suicide bombers but the death toll was comparatively low.

According to the investigation so far, the suicide bomber, whose real name could not be shared due to the ongoing investigation, was given the pseudonym of Abdullah. The investigators said that Abdullah's parents had moved to Pakistan during the Afghan war and first fetched up in Bajaur before finally moving to Peshawar.

“His inclinations towards religious extremism had been first noticed when he refused to accept a reward from the female principal of his school when he topped eighth grade,” the officials shared.
Later, Abdullah went ‘missing’ following which his parents had lodged a report with the local police in the provincial capital.  He was then reported to have been in Balochistan receiving regular training before he fled to Afghanistan to escape security operations.

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Authorities believe Abdullah entered Pakistan via Pak-Afghan border crossing Chaman in Balochistan in the second week of December and was later driven to Peshawar. A security official who watched all three CCTV footage of the attack told The Express Tribune that the bomber's level of training could be judged from the fact that he fired two shots in three seconds. The bomber wanted to blow himself up right in front of the pulpit, officials said, adding the site of the attack was not new to Abdullah and he had done regular recce because his actions were in line with his steps, which meant he was well prepared.

Security officials said since the group was already under watch, they were able to identify the group and take action against them immediately, adding the group chose an easy target out of frustration due to tight security at the church as security at minority places of worship was beefed up following intelligence reports.