Arrested terrorist alleges banned Afghanistan-based group planned assault with help of local facilitators
The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Sindh has registered five cases in connection with the terror attack on a Rangers transport company in Karachi’s Gulistan-e-Jauhar in which three Rangers personnel were martyred.
Investigators said an arrested terrorist claimed that the attackers belonged to the banned group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar and revealed details of the alleged planning, facilitators and commanders behind the assault.
The main case was registered following a complaint from an official assigned to the Rangers Transport Company (TC) Workshop.
According to the complainant, around 8 pm on June 27, a suicide bomber detonated himself at the main door of the workshop, martyring three Rangers personnel stationed there at the location.
Read: Rangers foil attack on Karachi camp and three soldiers are martyred
The complaint stated that as Ranger personnel advanced following the explosion, three armed terrorists carrying automatic weapons entered the premises, opened indiscriminate fire and threw hand grenades during the attack.
The complainant said he and other Rangers personnel engaged the attackers, while the Ranger Task Force and the Quick Response Force (QRF) also reached the spot.
According to the first information report, security personnel responded with official submachine guns (SMG), killing two terrorists, while a third attacker was wounded and captured alive by Rangers personnel. Shortly afterward, local police also responded to the scene.
The arrested terrorist identified himself as Usman alias Ali. A submachine gun, ammunition and a hand grenade were recovered from his possession.
During interrogation, the suspect identified his deceased accomplices as Umar, Abdul Hadi and suicide bomber Janan.
Investigators recovered a submachine gun, ammunition and magazines from Umar’s body, while Abdul Hadi was carrying a submachine gun, a double magazine and 16 rounds of ammunition.
Police also recovered 43 spent machine gun casings and confiscated an unexploded hand grenade at the scene. The bomb disposal team was called in, while the attack caused extensive damage to government property and vehicles.
Read also: Pakistan summons Afghan envoy over terrorist attack on Rangers camp in Karachi
The martyred and injured Rangers personnel were rushed to hospital immediately after the attack. The detained terrorist was later taken by ambulance to the hospital for medical treatment.
During interrogation, the suspect told investigators he was from Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He claimed that Janan and Umar were also Afghan nationals, while Abdul Hadi was a Pakistani national from Bajaur who had long been associated with a terrorist organization in Afghanistan and had arrived in Karachi a week before the attack.
According to investigation, the attackers stayed in a temporary safe house in Korangi with the help of local facilitators. They conducted a reconnaissance of the Ranger workshop before launching the assault.
The suspect claimed that the four attackers belonged to the banned organization Jamaat-ul-Ahrar operating from Afghanistan. He alleged that commanders Umar Qari, Maulvi Ahrar and Abdul Wajid sent them to Pakistan to carry out the attack.
He further claimed that the commanders ordered the group to inflict maximum casualties on the Rangers personnel and disturb peace and security.
The suspect also alleged that members of the Afghanistan-based organization (Mullah Tahir Afghani, Mullah Abdul Mannan and Umar Afridi) provided training for the attack.
The remaining four cases related to the attack were registered following a complaint by a police officer.
Repression against “illegal” Afghan residents intensifies
Meanwhile, the crackdown on Afghan nationals residing illegally in Karachi’s Malir district intensified, with police arresting five Afghan nationals allegedly living illegally in a warehouse and arresting the owner of the property for providing them with accommodation.
Quaidabad Police carried out an operation near Khyber Gali, Plastic Warehouse and Sher Pao Colony, where they arrested six people, including five Afghan nationals.
Read more: Terrorists should not be called ‘militants’: Tarar
Those arrested were identified as Abdul Hadi, Ayaz, Ehsanullah, Yaseen, Mohammad Akbar and Hassan Nawab. Police said one of those arrested was the owner of the warehouse where the Afghan citizens were allegedly staying.
A case has been registered against the five Afghan nationals under section 14-D of the Foreigners Act.
A separate case has also been registered against the warehouse owner under section 11 of the Sindh Temporary Residence Act for allegedly providing accommodation to undocumented foreign nationals.
