KARACHI: The Counterterrorism Department (CTD) of the police in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province announced on Saturday it had foiled a major attack planned to coincide with Pakistan’s Independence Day on August 14, following the arrest of two militants belonging to a proscribed armed group operating in the region.
The Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army (SRA) is a separatist militant outfit known for its violent activities aimed at promoting Sindhi nationalism.
The group has been involved in a range of attacks, including bombings, targeted killings and sabotage of infrastructure such as railway tracks and electricity pylons.
The CTD reported it had arrested two members of the group, Jameel Sheikh and Salahuddin Jatoi, with the help of intelligence agencies while they were planning an attack in Larkana, a major urban center known historically and politically as the hometown of the Bhutto family.
“The arrested terrorists had planned to bomb the central ceremony and the jail on Independence Day,” CTD Deputy Superintendent of Police Syed Asghar Shah said in a written statement.
“Explosives weighing 350 grams, six detonators, a hand grenade, safety fuse, wire, nuts and bolts and black powder were recovered from the terrorists,” he added.
Shah said the two suspected militants were also involved in the attack on a police office with a hand grenade two months ago.
“The arrested terrorists had received 15 days of training in Kandahar, Afghanistan,” he added.
The CTD announced the arrest of another SRA militant on Thursday, saying he was involved in violent activities targeting paramilitary personnel, Chinese workers and a prominent religio-political party in the country.
It reported he was arrested in Shaheed Benazirabad district, previously known as Nawabshah, along with a significant quantity of explosives and detonators, as he was planning to carry out an explosion on a train traveling from Sindh to Punjab.
All three SRA militants were said to have visited Afghanistan for training.
Officials in Islamabad have frequently accused the Taliban administration in Kabul of facilitating groups involved in cross-border attacks against Pakistani people and security forces.
However, the Afghan government has denied the allegation and described Islamabad’s security challenges as Pakistan’s domestic issue.
Pakistani counterterrorism force foils Independence Day militant plot in Sindh, arrests two
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Pakistani counterterrorism force foils Independence Day militant plot in Sindh, arrests two
- CTD says the militants were planning to target Larkana Jail on August 14 and were in possession of explosives
- The arrested militants are said to belong to the Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army and were trained in Afghanistan
Islamabad facilitating thousands of stranded Pakistanis in Gulf amid Iran conflict, FM says
- Pakistani religious pilgrims, visitors are being evacuated via land routes due to airspace shutdowns
- Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar says ‘our consistent message is de-escalation, restraint and return to dialogue’
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday said that Islamabad was working round the clock to assist thousands of Pakistanis stranded in Arab Gulf countries, reiterating his country’s readiness to facilitate diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East.
Tensions in the region heightened on Saturday following coordinated strikes by the US and Israel against Iran, diminishing prospects of a peaceful settlement of Tehran’s long-running dispute with Western countries and Tel Aviv over its nuclear program.
Tehran subsequently targeted American bases in Gulf states, including the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, prompting their governments to issue condemnations. The Saudi foreign ministry on Tuesday condemned Iran’s drone attack on the US embassy building in Riyadh.
Describing the Gulf situation as “very fluid,” Dar said regional airspace shutdowns had forced Pakistani religious pilgrims and visitors in Gulf states, also home to 4.5 million Pakistani expatriates, to mostly rely on land routes for their exit.
“The safety of Pakistanis abroad and the sovereignty of Pakistan remain our foremost priorities... Our crisis management unit is operational 24 hours to facilitate the stranded Pakistanis,” he said at a media briefing in Islamabad on Tuesday, adding that Pakistani missions in Tehran, Zahedan, Mashhad, Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha, Kuwait City and Manama were actively assisting nationals.
“If someone’s visa is expiring, as a visitor, they’re are getting fully cooperated. Similarly, if people are transiting from Saudi Arabia to other countries by road, then the other Gulf countries are also facilitating and helping them.”
Around 35,000 Pakistanis were currently in Iran and evacuation through Azerbaijan remained another viable option for those in northern Iran. So far, 64 Pakistanis have crossed into Azerbaijan, with dozens already flown onward, including 42 who reached Lahore on March 2, according to Dar.
Flights between Pakistan and Azerbaijan remain operational and Baku is providing visa-on-arrival and logistical support to stranded Pakistani nationals.
Dar said 4,543 Pakistani visitors were stranded in the UAE and around 1,400 in Qatar due to the conflict and airspace disruptions, adding that Saudi Arabia, home to more than 2 million Pakistani expatriates, remained relatively stable, with partial air operations continuing via Oman.
Land corridors between Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE and Qatar were being widely used and travelers were being allowed to transit by road, he said, thanking authorities in these countries for facilitating Pakistani nationals.
ISLAMABAD’S DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS FOR PEACE
The foreign minister said he had been in contact with foreign ministers from Turkiye, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Oman as well as European Union representatives over the past three days to help de-escalate the tensions.
“Our consistent message is de-escalation, restraint and return to dialogue,” he said.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is personally overseeing the situation and has convened Pakistani parliamentary leaders from all parties for a detailed briefing, he added.
In discussions involving US Secretary of State Marco Rubio prior to the US-Israeli strikes, Dar said, both Oman and Islamabad had been considered potential venues for US-Iran talks and Pakistan had conveyed that it was “fully ready” to host negotiations.
“Islamabad is available for any mediation or facilitation,” he said, adding that Pakistan’s policy did not support a regime change in Iran and focused solely on dialogue and regional stability.
