In the hinterland of terror, war on terror continues..who else could have carried it out with such intensity, it is a direct result of 'the global war on terror';;;
‘Real al-Qaeda target not captured in Gujrat’
By our correspondent
GUJRAT: Al-Qaeda suspects arrested after a shootout at Islamnagar on Sunday possessed heavy explosives that could be used for suicide attacks, sources told The News on Monday.
A police officer who had participated in the operation said on the condition of anonymity that the security agencies and the government had strictly directed them to apprehend the "terrorists" alive and they remained successful.
The sources said one of the three arrested women was carrying an infant son of Tanveer, a male held in the operation, who hails from Okara. The sources said the "terrorists" had got the house at Islamnagar with the help of a Mandi Bahauddin resident, through a property dealer of Gujrat.
Meanwhile, Gujrat police directed all the property dealers and their associates to be careful while renting out any house, and should have record of the tenants with them. The sources said that before the operation was launched, the security agencies received information that the head of al-Qaeda in Asia was hiding somewhere in Gujrat. "It was strongly believed that the wanted member of al Qaeda, who carried millions of rupees on his head, was inside the house and it was for this reason the government wanted to arrest the terrorists alive," said the sources. They added the real target could not be captured.
Sources said the operation was carried out by the in charge National Crisis Management Cell Brigadier Javed Iqbal Cheema who was giving instructions during the operation. The suspected terrorists while surrendering to police offered foreign currency worth Rs 8 million to them in exchange for their escape.
Sources said the suspects got the house — their hiding place — on rent at Islamnagar with the help of Asif of Mandi Bahauddin, who is a member of a banned jihadi organisation on the guarantee of Masood Sadiq through a property dealer M Aslam of Taimoor Chowk, Gujrat. Masood Sadiq is a friend of Asif who is still missing while the police has arrested his 65-year-old father M Sadiq. Masood is the owner of a pottery factory at Mohallah Chah Bairai Wala, Gujrat. |
