Pakistan locating masterminds for attack on Independence Day

Pakistani law-enforcement authorities are trying to locate the masterminds who plotted to attack targets in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi on the Independence Day, said a senior official here on Sunday.

Addressing a press conference, Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the terrorist gang was being masterminded by two Egyptian nationals identified as Qari Ismael and Sheikh Essa, and the law-enforcement agencies have arrested so far nine persons whowere planning to target the main official buildings in the twin cities.

"In the last one month our intelligence agencies have arrested very important people. We are not giving the names of some people.This is a big success of them (intelligence agencies)," said Rashid.

He noted that an Afghan who is still at large had dumped the ammunition in Rawalpindi, where a huge cache of arms and ammunition including bombs, grenades, rockets, rocket launchers, detonators and around 50 other explosive devices have been seized.

Rashid said the terrorists had planned to attack the Presidency,the Prime Minister House, the Convention Center of Islamabad, the US Embassy in Islamabad and the General Headquarters of the Chief of Army Staff House in Rawalpindi on the Independence Day that falls on August 14.

"Giving the names of some people may give out some matters. The intelligence agencies have entered very important networks and they have made very important arrests," Rashid said.

He disclosed that the terrorist gang had plans to cause huge devastation and massive killings in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad and their plan was spread over a week.

He said more arrests were also expected in a couple of days in this regard.

The situation, Rashid said, has become very much worrisome for the terrorists in the remote tribal areas bordering Afghanistan where hundreds of al-Qaeda operatives were believed to be hiding there and they are now moving towards urban areas to save their skin.

Pakistan, a Muslim country with 140 million people and a major US ally in the war on terror, has arrested over 500 al-Qaeda terrorists in the past years.

Source: Xinhua