IB helped resolve 30 terror cases in KP

ISLAMABAD: The Intelligence Bureau (IB), the country’s premier civil spy agency, has managed to resolve 30 major terrorism cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during last six weeks after receiving instructions by the prime minister to use all its resources on counter-terror operations.
According to IB Director General Aftab Sultan, the accused were involved in killing of 275 people in terrorism activities.
“I have been directed by the prime minister to focus only on curbing anti-terror activities across the country, so we have launched major operations in Sindh and KP,” Aftab Sultan told The News.
He said KP operations were conducted with full support of provincial police chief, and similar operations are being carried out in Sindh and Punjab with significant success.
The IB chief said a horrible terror activity has been prevented in Quetta last month through successful surveillance.
“It had the potential of becoming another catastrophic incident like Peshawar APS attack but luckily the culprits were apprehended along with a truck load of explosives,” he said.
Sultan, whose term in office had been extended by the prime minister on Friday, said major reforms are being carried out in IB and the process will continue for next six months.
The IB chief said the prime minister has assigned him the responsibility to restore the credibility and efficiency of the premier agency which has been systematically harmed during last 25 to 30 years.
“We have been provided with sufficient budget to upgrade our technical capabilities so that IB could become a modern spy agency,” he said.
He added that different levels of the IB officials are being imparted modern skills to meet the modern day challenges. The agency has already set up its modern tracking systems in Karachi, Sindh, the KP, Islamabad and Lahore.
To a question about political use of IB, Sultan said he did serve two terms with IB, and neither former PM Yusuf Raza Gilani nor the current PM had ever directed him to use the agency’s resources for political victimisation.
“Currently, IB’s 97% attention is on counter-terrorism and we have provided all necessary assistance to federal and provincial governments under the National Action Plan (NAP) against terrorism,” he said.
Sultan said, under the law, he is only answerable to the prime minister.
After the fresh extension, the contract of Aftab Sultan will end on April 2, 2016. The senior police officer Sultan was appointed on his current post in June 2013. This was his second tenure as he had already served the Bureau as DG in 2011.