Pakistan’s Counter-Terrorism Police have claimed that they have arrested the alleged mastermind behind last month’s attack on a paramilitary forces’ camp in Karachi, along with individuals accused of providing weapons and logistical support to the attackers. Pakistani officials claim that the attack was planned in Afghanistan.
Irffan Bahadur, the chief of Karachi’s Counter-Terrorism Police, said at a press conference that three Pakistani soldiers were killed and four others were injured in the June 27 attack on the paramilitary camp.
He alleged that the attack’s instructions, weapons, and explosives were provided from Afghanistan, and that the planning for the operation was also carried out there.
According to police, the alleged mastermind of the attack is a man named Mohammad Bashir, who was arrested along with 13 other individuals. Police said that four attackers identified as Janan, Hadi, Umar, and Usman had traveled from Afghanistan to Karachi. Authorities further alleged that Janan carried out a suicide attack at the camp’s entrance to facilitate the entry of other attackers.
Meanwhile, Sindh Interior Minister Zia-ul-Hassan Lanjar stated that three of the attackers were Afghan nationals, while one was a resident of Bajaur in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Police said that Usman, an injured attacker, confessed that they had received training at various camps in Afghanistan.
Pakistani authorities also stated that videos related to the preparation of the attack, as well as documents concerning alleged training camps in Afghanistan, were recovered from those arrested. Pakistani media have also released unbranded videos purportedly showing the early stages of the attack’s planning.
The Taliban have not yet responded to these latest allegations. However, they have previously rejected similar claims by Pakistan and stated that Afghan territory would not be used against any other country.
Writer:Saeed Sameer
