KOHAT, Nov 1 Police commandoes arrested a close aide of Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud along with his companion when he was coming to Kohat from Hangu on Saturday.

The district police officer said the militants were arrested by a special team of policemen and commandoes, on a tip of, at Ustarzai police station checkpost on Parachinar road.

He said that the arrested militant commander, Qazi Rehman, was involved in carrying out terrorist attacks on the security forces and kidnapping 13 officials of Frontier Constabulary in Doaba. He also led a group of 400 militants which besieged Doaba police station in Hangu district on the night of July 9, 2008. The militant commander wanted to get released No 2 of Baitullah Mehsud, Maluvi Rafi-ud-Din, who was arrested by police and army during flag march on the same day.

He also kidnapped 13 FC personnel who were later shot dead by the militants. He had been nominated in the FIR for attacking the house of Doaba police station SHO in Shiekhan village.

His companion Sultan Ghani and driver Raheem son of Saidan Gul, resident of Serozai, Doaba was also arrested. They had been nominated in the FIRs in Doaba police station, Hangu and Jangle Khel police station, Kohat on July 10 and July 20. They had been shifted to an unknown location for interrogation by a joint investigation team.

BOY INJURED A minor boy was seriously injured when a toy bomb exploded in his hands in Garhi Mawaz Khan area of the city on Saturday.

The boy Misbah-ud-Din son of Nizam-ud-Din was playing near a junk store when he picked up a toy, which exploded in his hands. He was rushed to Liaquat Memorial Hospital where doctors stitched his wounds.

Family sources of the injured boy said police were informed about the incident but they did not lodge any report against the shopkeeper.

POLICE VAN ATTACKED Unidentified persons fired a rocket at a police patrolling van in Bilitang town on Rawalpindi Road on late Friday night. Policemen travelling in the van remained unhurt.

The police mobile was on its routine patrolling when a 7MM RPG rocket was fired at the vehicle. The police party also retaliated but the attackers managed to escape. The rocket fell in the fields and did not explode.