Three militants allegedly associated with the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and one Rangers trooper were killed when a shootout took place during a targeted operation conducted by the paramilitary force in the Gulshan-e-Buner area on Wednesday.
A Rangers spokesman said that the suspected Taliban militants were plotting attacks to be carried out during Muharram and opened fire when the Rangers team arrived in the vicinity to conduct a targeted operation.
He further said that the three suspects were killed in retaliatory fire by the raiding team.
The spokesman confirmed that one of the Rangers man, belonging to the Anti-Terrorist Wing, was killed and another injured during the clash, adding that a huge quantity of weapons, including hand grenades, were also recovered from the killed suspects.
The suspects were also said to be involved in the attack on an imambargah in Karachi’s Quaidabad area in September this year.
The bodies of the suspected militants were handed over to the police for completion of legal formalities.
Gulshan-e-Buner lies in Karachi’s Landhi district near Quaidabad area.
Gulshan-e-Buner is considered a particularly lawless area which even the police usually avoid entering. It has a known Pakistan Taliban presence.
In December, a polio worker was shot dead there.
If the Rangers and police have now have managed to penetrate the area, it reflects their determination to neutralise militant strongholds.
