Lahore again: 3 times in 3 months

Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Wednesday blamed the Taliban for the attack outside the ISI headquarters in Lahore, saying the strike could be a retaliation of the Government’s military offensive against the militant outfit.

“It appears to be a fallout of the ongoing military operations in Swat, Dir and other areas of NWFP,” said Malik. There would be no let up in the crackdown on these “anti-national elements”, he added. “They want to destabilise Pakistan.Threats have been held out by Tehrik-eTaliban chief Baitullah Mehsud,” the Interior Minister told reporters in Karachi.

“We are in a state of insurgency. There is a war inside the country and there were two options before the Government... either to cave in... or to confront and crush them,” Malik said.

To read the full article, click here..
To read the ePaper, visit: http://epaper.indianexpress.com

This time it’s Lahore police academy: At least 3 terrorists captured alive

A group of gunmen, some in police uniforms, attacked a police academy today and held it for hours, seizing hostages, throwing grenades and killing at least 11 people before being overpowered by Pakistani commandos.

Six militants were arrested and eight died in the eight-hour battle to retake the compound on the outskirts of this city, said Rao Iftikhar, a top government official in Punjab province.

(Reuters quoted Interior Ministry Secretary Kamal Shah as saying that four terrorists were killed and three arrested. Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said the militants were believed to be fighters loyal to Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud who had come from the South Waziristan tribal region.The entire planning was done there, Malik told a news conference in Lahore. He said one of the men captured was an Afghan who arrived 15 days earlier and had rented a house there.) As the siege ended, black-clad Pakistani commandos fired their guns in the air in celebration at the top of the building, shouting “Allah ho Akbar”.

To read the full article, click here..
To read the ePaper, visit: http://epaper.indianexpress.com