October 09, 2006	Monday	Ramazan 15, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Oct 8: The combing operation in Islamabad will continue till Monday to look for rockets in the green areas, said Interior Secretary Syed Kamal Shah on Sunday.

“We are think that more rockets have been placed in different areas in the capital. Therefore, the combing operation had been launched to find more rockets,” the secretary told reporters after a function organised by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) at the Jinnah Convention Centre to express solidarity with people of earthquake-hit areas.

He said each and every green areas in the city including Margalla Hills, were being combed.

The official tried to play down criticism about security lapse in capital for that provided a chance to instal 107mm rockets in different places in Islamabad and said: “It is because of the police that the weapons were timely recovered.”

Mr Shah said some of the people including labourers who had first saw the rockets in front of Presidency, were still being interrogated. “It does not mean that these people were involved in the plot but they can provide some good leads if they had seen the suspects while placing the rockets, he added.

Some five Russian-made rockets of 107mm have so far been recovered from different places in the twin cities of Rawalpindi from Thursday. Four were recovered from Islamabad and one from Ayub Park Rawalpindi near the Army House.

He reiterated that it would be premature to say anything about the motive behind placing the rockets close to the Presidency and in front of ISI Headquarters but it looked “nothing more than an attempt to create panic”.

He said 107mm rockets had been in use Afghanistan since 1980 and had also been used by militants in Balochistan.

Following the recovery of the rockets, security has been tightened in the capital and police have started strictly checking vehicles.

A group of police personnel were seen in the bushes near the Punjab House and the Federal Secretariat Complex while combing the area early in the morning.