KARACHI, Jan 18: Law enforcement agencies picked up seven people, including two women, in a pre-dawn raid on an apartment in Gulistan-i-Jauhar for their suspected links with Al Qaeda, officials said on Sunday.

"We have recovered five grenades, four TT pistols, a lot of ammunition, maps and other things from their apartment", said an intelligence official on condition of anonymity.

He said two of the men were Egyptian nationals and three were Afghans, while the two Arab women were probably of Egyptian origin. The raid was conducted on an apartment No.528, Block-A, Cassim Complex in Gulistan-i-Jauhar at around 3am, he added.

He said the two women were wives of an Egyptian and an Afghan, who were among five arrested. A visit to the apartment showed that its door was locked and most of the apartments in the residential complex were vacant.

Residents of the complex said that a number of police and rangers mobiles and private vehicles surrounded the complex in the early hours. Some 50-60 officials in police uniforms, rangers, and in civvies, went straight to the top floor flat where a family, who had rented the place some two months back, resided.

A youth, who lived in a downstairs apartment said: "I heard the officials broke open the door and I saw they dragged away five men who were in handcuffs." Another resident said there were two boys of four and five years and an infant in the lap of one of the women, who were whisked away by the raiding party.

The residents claimed that a youth, identified as Jani and resident of a third floor apartment, was also taken away by the officials. However, he was later released. After his release he along with his family left the apartment for an unknown destination.

A watchman of the complex, Munir Ahmed said: "Police, rangers and people in civvies turned up at around 3am and asked me to open the main gate. When I asked for the reason they said they wanted to raid an apartment. When I opened the gate they ordered me to stay in my room, adjacent to the gate."

An auto mechanic whose workshop is situated in the complex said the men residing in the said apartment preferred to stay inside their flat. An estate agent said the apartment was owned by the builder of the complex, and it was rented out through another estate agent, who could not be available at his shop. The police authorities expressed ignorance about the raid and arrest of Al Qaeda suspects.