CTD Arrests Two BLA Militants in Karachi
KARACHI: The Sindh Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) announced on Tuesday that it had foiled a terrorist plot in Karachi by arresting two individuals allegedly affiliated with the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). According to a CTD statement, the suspects were identified as Mujahid Baloch and Fareed Baloch, also known as Zakir Bin, and were detained during an intelligence-based operation (IBO).
The CTD handout revealed that the pair had received training at BLA camps, including in reconnaissance and communications, and had been operating in Karachi on the instructions of commanders Sajid Baloch and Basheer Zeb. The statement noted that the suspects had been gathering information on sensitive installations and were attempting to establish a network to carry out attacks against security forces and other key sites in the city.
Recovery of Explosives and Legal Action
Officials reported that 4kg of explosives, detonators, primacord, and ball bearings were recovered during the operation. A case was registered under the Explosives Substances Act and the Anti-Terrorism Act, and further investigations are underway. The CTD confirmed that additional teams, working alongside other security agencies, had been formed to continue the investigation and carry out further operations based on information obtained from the suspects.
Context of Recent Attacks in Karachi
The arrests come just over a week after one of the deadliest attacks on the Pakistan Rangers in recent years in Karachi. On 27 June, three Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) personnel were killed and four others injured after security forces thwarted an attack on a Rangers camp in Karachi. The military's media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), stated that the assault was carried out by Khawarij belonging to the Indian proxy Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.
According to police, a suicide bomber detonated explosives at the camp's main gate before three armed men entered the premises, firing indiscriminately and throwing hand grenades. Security personnel shot dead two of the attackers, while the third was wounded and arrested alive. Police identified him as Usman alias Ali and recovered a submachine gun, ammunition, and a hand grenade from him.
Investigators said the suspect told them he was from Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He also claimed that two of the other attackers were Afghan nationals, while the third was a Pakistani from Bajaur who had long been linked to a militant organisation in Afghanistan and had arrived in Karachi a week before the attack.
