Two suspected facilitators of attack on Chinese consulate nabbed

KARACHI: Two alleged facilitators of the Chinese consulate attack were arrested by law enforcement agencies on Saturday from Karachi and Shehdadpur.

According to police sources, they were shifted to undisclosed location for interrogation. Police has also taken the alleged owner of the vehicle used by the terrorists and claimed it would make a major breakthrough in the case in the next 24 hours.

At least one of the suspects is believed to have been in contact with the terrorists before they attacked the consulate, the sources said.

Intelligence agencies also carried out an operation in different parts of Karachi on Friday night and arrested at least 10 suspects. The raids were held in Lyari, Baldia Town, Sohrab Goth and Orangi Town areas.

The attack was planned by banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) commander Aslam alias Achhu who is currently under treatment at Max Hospital in New Delhi, after being injured in an operation by Pakistani security forces near Sibi.

According to investigation agencies, Achhu had traveled to India from Afghanistan several times on a fake passport. His sister was arrested while crossing the border last year.

Police has also identified the attackers. The first terrorist was recognised as Abdur Razzaq, a government employee and resident of Balochistan’s Kharan area. His family had cut ties with him in 2014 due to his criminal activities.

The second terrorist has been identified as Azal Khan Marri alias Sangat Dada, while the third attacker has been identified as Raees Baloch.

Meanwhile, the police on Saturday registered an FIR [First Information Report] of the attack that left two policemen and two civilians dead.

The State is complainant in the FIR lodged by the police at Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) Police Station in Karachi. The complaint also mentions names of 13 facilitators of the attack.

According to text of the FIR, police had killed all three terrorists during an exchange of fire at the consulate’s entrance gate.

On Friday, security forces foiled an attack on the Chinese consulate located in Karachi’s upscale Clifton, killing all three terrorists and seizing at least nine hand grenades, Kalashnikov bullets, magazines and explosives.

Two policemen, ASI Ashraf Dawood and Constable Amir, were martyred in the operation to foil the attack. Two civilians, a father and a son who had come from Quetta for visas, were also killed, police said after reviewing initial information. A security guard was also critically injured.