TOBA TEK SINGH: A locally-made bomb containing about 2kg explosive material, three detonators connected with batteries and a hand-grenade were recovered on the lead of two arrested militants from an outhouse in Chak 301-GB on Friday.

Officials of law-enforcement agencies and the Counter Terrorism Department had on Dec 16 arrested a seminary teacher of Islamabad, Qari Hammad Ghalib, who belonged to the said village but was staying in a locality near the district jail.

They had also arrested Qari Ghalib’s cousin Arbaz and recovered from them a video containing religious songs against the armed forces.

The CTD had registered an anti-terrorism case against both the suspected militants and they were shifted to some unknown place in Lahore.

During investigation they revealed that they had hidden detonators and a hand-grenade at their outhouse.

Qari Ghalib told investigators that he was an activist of the Tehrik Ghalba-i-Islam.

The bomb disposal squad defused the locally-made bomb recovered by officials of the CTD and other law enforcement agencies.

Bomb disposal official Muhammad Arif said the bomb could have caused vast destruction.

Both arrested militants were again shifted to Lahore for further probe into their terrorism plan.

The distance between the Shorkot Rafiqui Airbase and the outhouse of the suspected militants was only about 22 kilometers.

The agencies’ people had launched a search operation in different localities around the Rafiqui Airbase after four rocket launchers were recovered from a canal near Chak 376-JB in Toba two days ago.

DPO’s PRO Shahbaz Virk said the local police were unaware of the information gathered by CTD officials from both the arrested militants.

A local CTD official said that Qari Ghalib had got jehadi and bomb-making training in Afghanistan and he and his accomplices had prepared a website to keep contact with each other.

He said teams had been sent for the arrest of other accomplices of both the arrested suspects.

He said a case had been registered against both suspected militants under ATA section 9AW by the CTD in Toba on Dec 16.

Published in Dawn, January 2nd, 2016