KARACHI: Pakistan Rangers Sindh and police jointly carried out an action early on Wednesday morning in Baldia Town and killed two suspected militants in an “encounter”. They had recently come from Afghanistan to conduct acts of terrorism in the metropolis.
The paramilitary force with the police’s Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) carried out an intelligence-based action and killed “two extremely wanted terrorists linked with banned outfits in an encounter”, said the Rangers spokesperson.
The dead were identified as Mohammed Rafiq, alias Adil, and Adnan Shabbir, alias Qari.
The Sindh government had announced a Rs2 million reward for the arrest of Mohammed Rafiq while Adnan Shabbir was described as an “extremely dangerous terrorist”.
“They were involved in bomb blasts, bank robberies, sectarian killings and killing of law enforcers.”
The spokesperson said that the Rangers’ intelligence and the CTD had received secret information that the militants linked with the Ustad Aslam-led group of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were present in Rais Yar Mohammed Goth of Baldia Town. Acting on a tip-off, the Rangers’ Shaheen Group and the CTD police encircled the goth late on Tuesday night. As the forces moved in, the suspects opened indiscriminate fire on them. Using a megaphone, the law enforcers warned the terrorists to surrender or face annihilation, but they ignored the warning and continued firing. During the shoot-out, both militants were killed.
‘They were involved in bomb blasts, bank robberies, sectarian killings and killing of law enforcers’
Two SMGs, two 9mm pistols, ammunition and explosive material were seized from their custody.
“Both suspects had recently come from Afghanistan to Karachi and were planning a major terror act here.”
The Rangers spokesperson said that Mohammed Rafiq prepared mines and IEDs to carry out terror acts in Waziristan and was involved in acts of violence. He was involved in a bomb attack on a police van in Shah Latif Town on March 27, 2015 in which two policemen were martyred while 15 policemen were injured. He was also involved in rigging a bomb with a rickshaw on Hub River Road in Baldia Town on Oct 12, 2014 in which four persons were wounded. He was also involved in an armed attack on the City Courts on June 19, 2010 during which four militants — Shakeeb Mudasir, Murad Shah, Wazir Taus and Murtaza Inayat — escaped from police custody.
During that attack on the City Courts, a policeman was martyred while another was wounded.
Rafiq was also involved in “several acts of sectarian killing”.
About the other killed militant, Adnan Shabbir, the Rangers official said that he was “highly trained”. He was a close aide of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi’s Naeem Bukhari, Farooq Bhatti, alias Taya, Sabir, alias Munna, Ishaq, alias Bobby, Asim, alias Capri, and Shahjehan Burmi.
He was involved in targeted killing of policemen Aqeel Ahmed, Mohammed Jameel, Mohammed Anwar and Mohammed Akhtar during an armed attack on a restaurant at Korangi 5 1/2 in August 2015.
He was also involved in targeted killing of head constable Anwar Jafri at Korangi 2 1/2 in 2014. He was also involved in targeted killing of ASI Mohammed Yusuf in Zia Colony of Korangi in 2014. Besides, the killed militant was involved in several sectarian targeted killings.
Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2020
