08 January 2005	Saturday	26 Ziqa'ad 1425

LAHORE, Jan 7: Police commandos aided by intelligence officials conducted a raid on two houses in Harbanspura and rounded up five men after an exchange of fire on Friday evening.

Police sources told Dawn that a heavy police contingent and over two dozen men in civvies surrounded Hameed Park in Harbanspura. Blocking all streets and link roads, police asked residents to stay indoors. Some policemen entered a rented house and rounded up four people, including an elderly couple.

Later, on the identification of the arrested persons, the commandos raided another house in nearby Gulistan Feroz Colony. A bearded man, later identified by the sources as Muhammad Abu Bakar, opened fire on the police.

He escaped from the scene and took shelter in a nearby mosque. During the crossfire he sustained bullet injuries. He was taken into custody and shifted to a hospital. The remaining four persons were shifted to an unidentified place and were being questioned till the filing of this report late night.

The sources said that the police commandos who conducted the raid belonged to Gujranwala. Gujranwala police DIG Altaf Qamar and DPO DR Arif Mushtaq were not available for comments. Senior Lahore police hierarchy showed its ignorance about the raid. The sources, however, said that hand grenades and assault weapons were also seized from the two houses.