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Police claim Karachi TTP chief, 3 aides held

By Faraz Khan

KARACHI: The Karachi Capital City Police on Monday claimed arresting Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s Karachi chief along with three of his accomplices, who were planning major terror activities in the city, and recovering arms and explosives from their possession.

Capital City Police Officer Waseem Ahmed and SSP Investigations East Zone II Chaudhry Muhammad Aslam Khan disclosed this at a press briefing at the Central Police Office, saying that the police have arrested Akhtar Zaman, who they believe is the Karachi TTP chief, and his accomplices, namely Samiullah, alias Shamim, Fazal Kareem and Munawar Khan.

Ahmed said these militants were arrested after the police raided their hideout in Sohrab Goth that was followed by a brief encounter.

“These men had tried to blow up an oil depot in Keamari on September 15, but the police have foiled their plans,” said Ahmed, adding that the culprits were planning to target the offices of security agencies with an explosives-laden vehicle.

Ahmed also said, “These men wanted to plant explosives in sensitive areas of Karachi, especially police installations, on the pattern of the terrorist attacks on Lahore’s FIA building and Manawan police training centre.”

The sequestered items included 75kg of highly explosive RDX, three Kalashnikovs and a TT pistol.

The Karachi police chief said the arms and ammunition recovered near the Saeedabad Police Training Centre in Baldia Town a few days back including two suicide jackets, four Kalashnikovs, 17 hand grenade, 17 magazines with 240 bullets, one RPG rocket, nine detonators, seven BM mortar missiles, one anti-aircraft launcher with one rocket also belonged to these culprits.

“The terrorists have failed to carry out major attacks in the city and the credit for this goes to the police,” Ahmed said. “We have arrested 60 terrorists and killed six in the last two years.”

Ahmed further added that due to the ongoing army operation, Rah-e-Nijat, in the tribal areas, many terrorists have moved to urban areas of the country with the intention to disturb the law and order situation.

Sources, however, say that Akhtar Zaman was actually the former Karachi TTP chief and now the TTP’s Karachi wing has a new head.

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