CTD arrests five BLA men in Lahore raid

LAHORE: The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab police claimed on Thursday to have arrested five suspected terrorists, associated with proscribed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), during a raid in Rajanpur, reported ARY News.

CTD officials relayed the arrested terror suspects were planning to carry out a bomb attack on railway tracks.

Arms, improvised explosive device (IED) and six kilogrammes of explosive material were recovered from their possession.

The officials said they had got evidence of the suspects having ties with Baloch separatist leader Baramdagh Khan Bugti who used to fund their activities from abroad.

Earlier, on July 2, the United States had designated the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) as a global terrorist group.

“The BLA is an armed group that targets security forces and civilians, mainly in Baloch areas of Pakistan,” the State Department said in its designation.

The US State Department said it was designating the BLA as a global terrorist group, making it a crime for anyone in the United States to assist the militants and freezing any US assets they may have.