The Punjab Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on Saturday said it has arrested five suspected terrorists linked to banned outfits during operations carried out in different cities of the province.

In a statement issued today, the CTD said it conducted 179 intelligence-based operations in Sahiwal, Pakpattan, Bahawalpur and Rawalpindi and “foiled a major terror plot”. It said 179 suspects were interrogated and five alleged terrorists were arrested.

According to the CTD, the five alleged terrorists belonged to banned organisations Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi.

The statement further said that 565 grams of explosives, two hand grenades, two improvised explosive devices, five detonators, 13 feet of safety fuse wire, 3.5 feet of primer cords, five pamphlets of banned organisations, 36 stickers and Rs5,520 rupees were recovered from the possession of the suspected terrorists.

The CTD alleged that the suspected terrorists had “planned to sabotage [sic] across the province and wanted to target important installations”. The police have registered five cases against them and shifted them to an “unknown location”, it added.

The statement concluded that the CTD was “working towards a safer Punjab and authorities were determined to put anti-state elements behind bars”.

This week, 769 combing operations were conducted in various parts of the province, resulting in the arrest of 82 suspects, the statement added.

In August, 13 alleged terrorists were arrested by the CTD, among them “key Daesh commanders.”