Two most wanted terrorists were killed in exchange of fire with police which also left a DSP injured in DI Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) on Thursday.
Addressing a press conference District Police Officer (DI Khan) Dera, Abdur Rauf Babar Qaisarani told journalists that DSP Saddar Abid Iqbal was going to a farewell party and his vehicle was ambushed by bike riders.
“The DSP received three bullet injuries and in the return firing of his gunmen two of the attackers were also killed,” he said, adding that the terrorists were later identified as Iqbal alias Bali Kiara, resident of Purwa and his aide Mufti Javed.
The DSP was rushed to the nearby hospital where his condition is stated to be stable now after treatment.
“Arms and ammunition and Rs3.5 lakh were recovered from the possession of Iqbal including a suicide vest. He was wanted to K-P and Punjab police in 32 cases of terrorism,” said the DPO.
The slain terrorist was involved in deadly attacks at police and Shia community in K-P and Punjab province and both the provincial governments had announced Rs10 million head money each on his capture dead or alive.
It may be recalled that he was the mastermind behind the November 2008 suicide attack at a hospital in DI Khan which killed 32 and injured 55. Nearly all of them were members of the local Shia Muslim community.
He was also involved in kidnap for ransom cases and had terrorized Dera for more than a decade.
“He was the resident of Purwa tehsil of DI Khan and hailed from the Saraiki belt.
In the past government and CTD police tried its best to arrest him and bring him to justice for the crimes he committed but being a clever man he escaped every time,” said a police official while talking to The Express Tribune.
He said that terrorism in DI Khan was sectarian motivated because of the large Shia population in the district, adding that Iqbal was an active member of the banned TTP and with his death a bloody chapter of terrorism came to an end in the area.
Local residents appreciated the efforts of Dera police and hoped the death of these two notorious terrorists would bring peace to the region.
DI Khan is one of the most volatile districts of K-P where terrorism has a sectarian footprint and Shia community along with police is the primary target of the banned TTP.
In the past a police constable Imran Gandapur was found involved in targeted attacks at Shia community. He was finally discovered after which he fled. Later he was killed in an encounter with security forces.
Terrorism in K-P has registered a significant increase since the fall of Kabul to Taliban in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US forces from the war-torn country.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 5th, 2023.
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