Three suspected Ansarul Shariah operatives arrested in Tando Adam

KARACHI: Three more suspects have been detained by Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) on suspicion of having links with newly emerged militant group Ansarul Shariah during raids in Tando Adam Khan city of Sindh.

The raids were carried on the information garnered during an interrogation of Professor Mushtaq, who was arrested from Quetta in an intelligence based operation, sources said.

However, the identification of the suspects could not be established.

In a separate raid, the intelligence agencies apprehended another operative of the group from Karachi’s Hassan Colony. The suspect has been identified as Saqib who has reportedly been taken to an undisclosed location for an interrogation.

The law enforcement agencies have intensified their crackdown against the newly formed militant group, which believed to be comprised of people associating academia.

Earlier, the intelligence agencies have arrested four women including a doctor allegedly for their links with the militant group.

On Wednesday, the head of militant group behind recent killings of policemen and assassination attempt on Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) senior leader Khawaja Izharul Hassan had made startling revelations during interrogation, informed sources told ARY News.

Ansar ul Shariah’s chief Shehryar – alias Dr Abdullah Hashmi – told the investigators that Ansar ul Shariah was formed back in 2015 and made several attempts to link the group with global terror outfit Al-Qaeda after establishing contacts with one of its operative in Karachi named Abdullah Baloch.

He admitted receiving militancy training in Shorawak area of Helmand province, Afghanistan and his group comprised 10 to 12 people mostly students from University of Karachi, Dawood University of Engineering & Technology, and NED University of Engineering and Technology.

He confessed his group targeting police personnel to receive recognition and prove its mettle in carrying out terror operations.

Commenting on slain assailant who attacked Khawaja Izhar ul Hassan, Shehryar said that Ahsan had too received militancy training from Afghanistan and was an electronic engineer.

It merits to mention here that Ansarul Shariah – a militant group – became notorious recently after carrying out a botched assassination attempt on Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) senior leader Khawaja Izharul Hassan on Eid day last week.