KARACHI: The authorities claim to have arrested five militants from the ‘Punjabi Taliban’ group on Saturday. They seized two suicide jackets, 145 kilogrammes of explosives, six detonators, 23 rockets grenades, three Kalashnikovs, a 9mm pistol, 10 kilogrammes of fertiliser and detonating wires from them.
Officials from the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of the Sindh Police identified the suspects as Alauddin alias Shakirullah, Farhan Khan alias Ali, Amir Shahzad alias Mufti Asadullah, Irfan alias Mavia and Shah Jahan alias Adnan Munna.
While speaking to the media, Additional IG CID Ghulam Shabbir Sheikh and SP Mazhar Mashwani said that Alauddin was the chief of the Punjabi Taliban group in Sindh. They added that the group was led by Ustad Aslam.
According to Sheikh, they conducted a raid on the National Highway near a thermal factory in Shah Latif Town on a tip-off. He said that the suspects were targeting high profile judges, police officers and government officials.
SP Mashwani said that Alauddin was arrested while his accomplices threw a hand grenade and managed to escape in an attempted bank robbery in 2010 in Orangi Town. He added that Alauddin’s accomplices managed to escape from police custody and went to Punjab. The police officer said that the suspect received Rs1.7 million to do some work in Sindh.
The suspects confessed to have killed seven suspects including a police constable in Hyderabad. The police said that they would share more details with the media later.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 1st, 2012.
COMMENTS (11)
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@Raj, unfortunately they are all muslims. Our own hands are filled with blood
What a country, where the identities of the criminals are protected, and those of the victims is blown away!
@R S JOHAR: Because they have supporters within the Punjab Government.
I am shocked, shocked, there is terrorism in Punjab. Shocked that the terrorists are Punjabis. Likely trained by CIA, RAW, Mossad. Must be Hindus, Jews, or Christians in disguise
......and a few weeks later they will walk free on some whimsical pretext or the other.
It appears that more proxy warriors will be accomodated through the MFN status to India by naive Pakistan. These terrorists are well paid loaded with money to commit crimes in Pakistan. Pakistan is being targetted fom all angles by its enemies. A small country like Pakistan has been withstanding immense pressure and exploitation namely: Terrorosm coming from India using both sides of the borders and Afghanistan making it worst by accomodating the terrorist nation India to funnel terrorism into Pakistan through Afghan border. The inept so called democracy in Pakistan has opened the flood gates to corruption, terrorism and bloodshed of the common man. It has gifted the nation with worst economy as a topping on the cake. One has to ask one simple basic question as to who is their boss and who is funding their boss's boss. Pakistan was too trusting and was never ready for this proxy War that has mushroomed so much. Pakistan needs to expand its ISI department and Military to effectively deal with this Gigantic Bloody Proxy War.
@Acorn Guts - From what I have read, TTP is a loosely held group of militants originating from different areas. They are based out of FATA, KPP, Balochistan, as well as Southern Punjab. I think they are referring to the Southern Punjab wing here.
Blue eyed boys yester years. Dirty games of proxy are proving costly. Reality is harsh, but it is.
Punjabi Taliban is different from Pakistan Taliban. Pakistan Taliban is a generic term and refers to any Pakistan who is working in that group. Punjabi Taliban is a specific group of hardened Punjabi militants, mostly trained in Punjab. These are even more dangerous than the Pakistan Taliban (mostly comprising of Pashtun men but also having other ethnic groups). It's main component, Ilyas Kashmiri, was soon killed after it appeared that he was behind deadly Naval attack in Karachi. Ilyas was the mastermind of many terrorist acts within Pakistan and was part of Punjabi Taliban.
Why this oufit members not arrested in Punjab ?
There were Pakistani Taliban and now you tell me there are Punjabi Taliban as well?