No Al Qaeda activities in Karachi, says Sindh IG

Staff Report

HYDERABAD: Sindh Inspector General (IG) Police Syed Kamal Shah on Tuesday denied reports of any Al Qaeda activities in Karachi saying, “We have no proof suggesting Al Qaeda is operating in the city.”

Addressing a news conference at a local circuit house here, the IGP said, “I don’t have any information of Al Qaeda active in Karachi. We also don’t have proof of the network’s involvement in the bomb blasts and sectarian terrorism in Karachi.” He said most of the men involved in the bomb blasts had been apprehended and were 31 in number belonging to five different groups. The IGP also said the arrested were all Pakistanis.

He said Sindh Police had not interrogated any of the foreign suspected terrorists arrested from Karachi. “All of them were handed over to the investigation agencies that interrogated them and the results of the interrogations is a matter of national security and thus could not be disclosed.” The IGP said he never claimed that police had arrested any foreign terrorist suspects. “I only said the FBI did not help us arrest the terrorists involved in sectarian terrorism.” Regarding the bomb blasts in Hyderabad, the IGP said the police was making efforts to track down the culprits behind the incidents, but could not make any breakthroughs.

Regarding the security arrangements ahead of Ashura, the IGP said Sindh Police had formulated a contingency plan to avert any incident in the upcoming days of Muharram, particularly Ashura.

The IGP said effective security measures in all districts had been taken under the plan to maintain law and order. He said Rangers would also support the police in the security arrangements while the army would also be available in any emergency, but would only be called in case of any serious incident. The IGP said control rooms had also been established in all districts to report any situation while security would made tightened around Muharram processions and Majalis and their venues, including Imambargahs.

He said six control rooms were established in Karachi, while such control rooms would also be established in each district of Sindh.

Regarding the law and order situation in interior Sindh, the IGP said the crime rate in interior Sindh had decreased and Sindh Police had arrested notorious robber Faqir Kamal Sheikh from Thatta district. He called the arrest a great achievement for the police saying so far 56 cases had been found against him and a further number of cases were being checked in Punjab Police’s records. The IGP supported the presence of Rangers in Sindh saying they had been supporting the police in combating crime and their presence never cause any problems. He denied answering a question regarding the expenses borne by the Sindh government for the presence of Rangers.

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