KARACHI - Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) claimed to have gunned down five Al-Qaeda terrorists in an alleged encounter here on Monday.
 CTD has claimed that the killed militants were associated with al-Qaeda, Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and were plotting a major terror activity in a city.
CTD officials said that the militants were killed during an encounter conducted on a tip-off in Khairabad area of Orangi Town. “This was not only their hideout, they used to manufacture bombs there,” claimed Khattab. “They attacked us with hand grenades and sophisticated weapons during the raid.”
CTD official Raja Omar Khattab claimed that besides involving in several cases of terrorism, the killed militants were involved in the recent suicide attack on Rangers vehicle at Qalandria Chowk area of North Nazimabad in which at least two Rangers personnel were killed and three others were wounded.
Militants killed included Noorul Hassan alias Hashim alias Bhai Jan alias Babu Bhai, AQIS Karachi chapter chief, deputy commander Usman alias Irfan alias Abdullah and three of their comrades, Ibrahim alias Rafiq alias Ovais and two would be suicide bombers who have yet to be identified were killed. Khattab said that the police have recovered a huge cache of explosives, chemicals, detonators, three suicide jackets, laptops and literature for making bombs. “The Karachi chapter chief killed in the attack had been associated with several jihadi outfits in 1999 and for the same reason, he was appointed as a Karachi chapter commander in the AQIS. He had also prepared a motorcycle for attacking the Rangers vehicle in Qalandria Chowk area,” the officer explained. The officer said that the killed militants were involved in several cases of attacking the law enforcers – Rangers and police and political party’s workers.
He said that the suicide attacker who attacked the Rangers vehicle has now been identified as Arif alis Wahaj who was a resident of Korangi’s Bilal Colony and was also the student of Karachi’s top religious seminary. “We have also recovered his video statement which he recorded before attacking the rangers,” the officer claimed.
This was the second major encounter of the CTD in which the CTD officials claim to have killed the AQIS militants in Karachi as earlier on January 10, the same police had killed a local commander of the AQIS, Sajjad alias Kargil and three of his companions in Qayyumabad area of Korangi.