Daily Times

The Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) said on Saturday it had arrested 33 suspected terrorists in 475 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) conducted across the province in the past month.

The counterterrorism efforts come amid heightened security concerns across the country.

Pakistan experienced an increase in terrorist attacks as a total of 59 terrorist attacks occurred countrywide in August compared to 38 attacks in the previous month, according to a digital database maintained by the Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), an Islamabad-based think-tank. In a press release, the Punjab CTD said it had interrogated 475 suspects during the IBOs and seized various items, including explosives, weapons and banned texts.

“During these IBOs – 33 suspects belonging to defunct organisations were arrested,” the statement said.

The CTD detailed that the groups included Fitna Al Khwarij (Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan), Daish (also known as the militant Islamic State group), Al-Qaida, Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, Zainebiyoun Brigade and others.

It added that the IBOs were conducted in various Punjab districts to “effectively counter the menace of terrorism” and “to avert any untoward incident”.

According to a list provided by the CTD of the 33 netted suspects, eight of them – the highest number – had been arrested from Lahore. Three suspects were taken into custody from Bahawalpur while two each were arrested from Sheikhupura, Hafizabad, Rahim Yar Khan, Attock, Nankana Sahib and Bahawalnagar. The department also arrested one suspect each from Gujranwala, Mianwali, Jhang, Khushab, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Narowal, Sahiwal and Bhakkar.