CTD arrests alleged terrorists 'planned to target sensitive installations'

LAHORE: The officials of Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) claimed to have arrested three alleged terrorists during a raid conducted near Bahawalnagar-Haroonabad By-pass, ARY News reported on Monday.

During the raid, CTD officials have also recovered a huge quantity of explosives from the possession of the alleged terrorists identified as Imran, Muhammad Abid Sohail and Muhammad Raza.

The spokesperson added seven detonators, safety fuses, ball bearings, two packets of explosive material weighed up to 869 grams and 869 grams respectively were also seized in the raid.

The arrested terrorists have allegedly planned to target sensitive installations in Bahawalnagar. The spokesperson said the arrested men were associated with the banned outfit, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Read: Rangers arrest two members of banned outfit during IBO

Earlier in December last year, CTD of the Punjab police in a joint operation along with law enforcement agencies had claimed to have rounded up five alleged terrorists of Al-Qaeda in Gujranwala.

According to the CTD spokesperson, the arrested suspects were running media cell of Al-Qaeda which they had shifted to Gujranwala from Karachi in the near past. He said that the suspects were planning to carry out an attack in the area when they were nabbed.

Explosives, weapons, suicide jackets, laptop, printing machine and other material was recovered from their possession. The arrested were identified as Asim Akbar, Abdullah, Umair, Ahmed alias Qasim, Muhammad Yousuf and Muhammad Yaqoob. They have been shifted to an unknown place for further investigation into the matter.