Jumatul Widah: Terrorist bid foiled

Police arrest five suspects.

ISLAMABAD:

The city police and security agencies claimed on Friday that they foiled a terrorist plan in the city by arresting five suspected terrorists. A suicide vest and hand grenades were also seized, the police added. The terrorists were planning an attack on Jumatul Widah, according to the police.

Their sixth accomplice, Sardar Ali Khan Khattak, had gone to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) to “bring a suicide bomber for the attack”, police said, adding that Khattak is a naib-qasid in the Finance Division and was on leave for last two years.

On information provided by intelligence agencies, the Aabpara police, along with officials of Crime Investigations Department, raided a hotel in Aabpara market and arrested a suspect.

He was taken to an undisclosed location where, during interrogations, he told security officials about his other accomplices, their whereabouts and plans of a terrorist attack on Friday.

The information extracted from the suspect led the police and the security agencies’ officials to raid a house in sector G-6/1-1. They arrested five suspects from the house and seized a suicide vest, a hand grenade and a pistol along with foreign currency from their possession, said a police official.

The suspects were shifted to an undisclosed location for interrogation. The police did not give the names of the suspects or specify the country whose currency they were carrying. However, police claimed the suspects were planning to attack a Friday congregation in Islamabad on Jumatul Widah and were waiting for the suicide bomber to arrive from K-P.

The suspects arrested along with the two suspected terrorists were likely not involved in much of the planning and execution of the attack, said a police official.

Youm-e-Dua observed

Youm-e-Dua, or day of prayers, was observed across the country on the appeal of the Federal Cabinet to urge the nation to pray for restoration of peace in Karachi and the country.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani in a message said the recent incidents in Karachi were a matter of concern not only for Pakistanis but also for the entire Islamic world. He said the spate of target killings and terrorism were adversely impacting national growth.

PM offers prayers at Faisal Mosque

PM Gilani offered Friday prayers at the capital’s iconic Faisal Mosque amid tight security and a full hall. The mosque’s imam prayed for peace in the country. Former ministers Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Nazar Mohammad Gondal accompanied the PM. Additional input from APP



Published in The Express Tribune, August 27^th, 2011.