Rangers arrest over 200 men from an allegedly no-go area

Rangers spokesperson said that 184 of the detainees were released after interrogation.

KARACHI:

Acting on the Supreme Court's order to eliminate no-go areas in the city within the next 15 days, Pakistan Rangers launched a massive operation at around 4am on Saturday morning and arrested as many as 200 suspects.

The Rangers targeted Manghopir and Sultanabad, notorious for housing several Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, on the first day of targeted operations against criminal groups in Karachi.

Over 1,000 Rangers personnel, which included commandos of the Rangers’ anti-terrorism squad and women’s wing, participated in the operation. Rangers sealed all the entry and exit points leading to the area and personnel took positions on hilltops and used ladders to jump into hideouts during the door-to-door operation.

“The police doesn’t go in with proper preparation that’s why they face resistance,” said a Rangers spokesperson. “There is a clear difference between the Rangers and the police - we go in with proper preparation that’s why the terrorists failed to resist.”

Besides the arrests, the eight-hour-long operation also yielded 54 weapons of different calibres, walkie-talkies, batteries and three IEDs. Rangers director general Major General Rizwan Akhtar also visited the area to monitor the operation. The sector commandant, Brigadier Hamid Ali Khan, declared the operation a success and also informed the media that it has been decided to deploy troops in Manghopir on a permanent basis.

The spokesperson said that 184 of the detainees were released after interrogation. The remaining suspects have yet to be handed over to the police.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 24^th, 2013.