Two ‘AQIS’ men killed, one held in Gulshan-e-Maymar raid

Police say three men were involved in attacks on Rangers and police check-posts

Karachi

Two suspected terrorists of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) were gunned down in a shootout with police and another was arrested in Barfat Goth, Gulshan-e-Maymar on Wednesday.

Raja Umer Khattab, the chief of the counter-terrorism department’s anti-transnational terrorist intelligence group, said the police also found an explosives factory and a huge cache of weapons and explosive material at the terrorists’ hideout.

The official said acting on a tip-off he had conducted a raid in Barfat Goth, Gulshan-e-Maymar with his team and in the ensuing exchange of fire with the terrorists that lasted for over an hour, two members of the terrorist outfit were killed and one arrested. The men killed in the shootout were Abdul Saboor alias Hamad alias Hassan alias Younus and Mohammad Mujtaba alias Rehan alias Aslam alias Kashif alias Abdul Rehman. Their arrested companion was identified as Mohammad Murtaza alias Abu Hurairah.

While searching their hideout, the police came across an underground water tank where 80 kilogrammes of explosives, circuits, ball bearings, bottle bombs, ball bombs, and other material used for preparing bombs were found.

Besides, they also found a laptop, memory cards, USBs, jihadist literature, target lists, two motorcycles equipped with improvised explosive devices, two Kalashnikovs, a 9mm pistol, bullets and grenades there.

During interrogation, Murtaza told the police that he and his accomplices were operating in Karachi since 2013 and carried out attacks on the vehicles of police and Rangers and important installations, Additional IG CTD Sanaullah Abbasi told The News separately.

In 2015 when their former leader Noor Hashim was killed in a shootout with the law enforcement agencies, AQIS had appointed Mohammad Mujtaba as their new commander in the city. Mujtaba, who was killed in the shootout, was an expert in making bombs especially improvised explosive devices, and had selected the hideout where the encounter took place, Abbasi said.

Murtaza revealed that many operatives of the terrorist outfit Harkat-ul Mujahideen al-Alami were working together with his outfit and mostly active in in Shadman, North Karachi, Surjani, Orangi and Korangi where they brainwashed youngsters into becoming terrorists. The Harkat-ul Mujahideen al-Alami operatives also worked as messengers for the AQIS and the two outfits also financially supported each other’s men.

Murtaza disclosed that presently the AQIS leader in Karachi was Zarrar alias Naseem Bhai. Zarrar was formerly associated with the Harkat-ul Mujahideen al-Alami and was earlier arrested by police but granted bail. After his release, he joined AQIS. The operatives of AQIS share information with each other via internet calling, memory cards and USBs.

Presently the central command of AQIS is based in Afghanistan and because of the security forces operation in the northern areas, it had become hard for its operatives active in Pakistan to coordinate with their commanders.

The official said the three terrorists were involved in the murder of an SHO and his security guard near Anda Morr, New Karachi in 2013. The same year, they had attacked a police van near Shafiq Morr with a grenade killing three policemen. Besides, they had had lobbed grenades at two imambargahs in the Central district. They had attacked an armoured personnel carrier of the Sharea Noor Jehan police station and were involved in an attack on a Rangers vehicle on Sharea Noor Jehan in 2015.

The three men were also involved in a bomb attack on the Orangi Town police station and grenades attacks on Rangers check-posts near Nazimabad and Ghalib Library.

This year, they had attacked Rangers check-posts near the Matric Board Office, Korangi Crossing, Korangi 2½, and Essa Nagri and police vans in Nazimabad No 2 and near Liaquatabad Super Market.

They were also involved in a bottle bomb attacks on the Mobina Town, Orangi, Momimabad, and Ibrahim Hyderi police stations this year.

The official said they had also murdered activists of political and religious parties.

Khattab said following continuous attacks on police and Rangers check-posts, CTD chief additional IG Sanaullah Abbasi had assigned the task of arresting the terrorists involved in them to his unit.

Bodies Recovered

Two bullet-riddled bodies were found in the city on Wednesday.

The first was found in a garbage den in the Memon Goth police limits. The man was identified as 30-year-old Zahid, who, according to the police, was a watchman at a PSO petrol pump.

His body was taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for legal formalities. 

In the Korangi Industrial Area police jurisdiction, a second body was found in an empty plot situated in Allahwala Town.

The man could not be identified immediately and appeared to be 40 years old. His body was also shifted to the JPMC for legal formalities