Key suspect of Sehwan blast arrested in Karachi

Naimat Khan

KARACHI: Police on Friday claimed to have arrested key suspect in blast on shrine of Lal Shehbaz Qalandar in Sehwan.

Addressing news conference at the Counter Terrorism Department’s civil line office, Deputy Inspector General of Police CTD, Amir Farooqi said that Nadir Ali was arrested near Hub River when he tried to enter Karachi from Balochistan.

“On tip off police conducted a raid and arrested Nadir Ali who was riding a motorcycle,” Farooqi told reporters; claiming Nadir was the key suspect in blast. He informed that the planning of the Sehwan attack took place at Dera Murad Jamali — a city located in Nasirabad District in Balochistan.

He added that all the people of the group involved in the attack have been identified by the police officials and are either dead or on the run. The officer said that Daesh’s Sindh chief has been killed by the law enforcement agencies as well. During interrogation it emerged that the suicide has stayed at the house of Nadir Ali Jakhrani situated in Kandhkot area of Sindh.

A cache of weapons and explosive material was recovered from the possession of the terrorist, identified as Nadir Ali by DIG Farooqi.

The deadly attack on the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, which was claimed by the militant Islamic State (IS) group, had resulted in the deaths of at least 88 people and left at least 150 others wounded. Following the bloodbath, the army had launched Operation Raddul Fasaad, saying it was aimed at eliminating the “residual/latent threat of terrorism”.

DIG Farooqi said the foothold of IS had been weakened in Pakistan after several operations targeting its operatives.

“After the Mastung Operation, one by one their [IS] militants are being captured. Today, [the key suspect in the shrine attack] has been arrested. They have become very weak here,” the DIG CTD said. “Their people have escaped and the group’s presence is found across the border in Afghanistan,” Farooqi said.

“They (IS) were not operating here. The group’s elements used to be associated with various political parties, primarily the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. Then they went towards IS,” he added. “Foreign elements are definitely involved in incidents of terrorism – they fund, train and assign targets to these groups,” he said.

However, the DIG said that the army’s operations had limited the group.

“They have been eliminated now,” he claimed.