LAHORE: Two suspected terrorists and an official of an intelligence agency were killed and four others, including a military officer, injured during an operation after security forces raided a house near Raiwind Road in the small hours of Thursday to capture some suspects.

The incident took place a couple of kilometres from the Jati Umra residence of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. This fact prompted some provincial ministers and police officers to conjecture that the suspects were plotting an attack on Jati Umra. The suspects, including a woman, were living in the rented house for about two months.

Witnesses said security personnel had captured one of the suspects alive during the raid and later faced severe resistance.

Two suspected terrorists, intelligence official killed

But police did not confirm any such arrest.

The owner of the house, a property dealer and some other people were taken into custody and shifted to an unspecified place for interrogation.

The 10-hour long operation brought out a large crowd. They gaped at the house which was damaged by heavy gunfire.

Punjab ministers Rana Mashhood and Shujakhanzada told reporters that Jati Umra and some other key places could have been the potential targets of the terrorists.

Deputy Inspector General Mohammad Waqas Nazeer told Dawn that police reached the place at about 3am on an emergency call that an official of an intelligence agency had lost his life and a few others suffered injuries during the raid on the house situated near Arayan village in Raiwind.

He said officials of Punjab police, Elite commandoes and anti-terror squad reached the scene with weapons and armoured personnel carriers to assist other agencies, including Rangers. He said security forces resorted to teargas shelling and used weapons to counter the suspects.

The DIG claimed that automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), ammunition and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), sensitive documents and other material were recovered from the house. He said the presence of the suspects in an undeveloped residential locality and their motives were under investigation.

The DIG did not reveal the names of terrorists killed.

But police later identified one of the terrorists as Aqsan Mehboob.

According to a police source, an official of a law enforcement agency, identified as Sabir Hussain, was killed and three Elite force personnel were injured.

The source said the intelligence officials raided the house at 12.30am on a tip-off that Aqsan Mehboob, son of Mohammad Asghar of Okara, was present there.

He said that some suspects earlier picked up by security officials had informed them about the presence of Aqsan in Lahore.

The arrests were made in Okara district on different occasions, police sources said. Shan was arrested in Okara and Azad Khan, of Miramshah, in Thokar Niaz Baig. On the basis of information given by them, six more suspects were held in Okara a few days ago. Some explosives were also recovered from them.

Sources said Aqsan joined Al Qaeda after getting training from Lashkar-e-Taiba. He had close links with the arrested terrorists. Aqsan, a science graduate, was a teacher by profession.

They said the other suspect killed during the operation also belonged to Okara. Raiwind police shifted his body to Jinnah Hospital’s morgue. A source in the hospital said they had not received the body of any security official.

“A man in his 30s hired the house on rent some 50 days ago. He was living with a woman and another man. They used to move on two motorcycles and a rickshaw. Most of the time we saw them carrying bags on their back,” said Gulzar, who lives nearby.

He said the woman used to visit the bearded man who spoke Urdu and Pastho. Their movements, most of the time, took place at night.

Gulzar said the other man introduced himself as a Punjab University student. A couple of other people would also visit the house. “The last time I came across one of the residents, he was carrying some pots on a rickshaw. They usually spoke little to neighbours,” he said.

Muhammad Sultan, who lives in an adjacent house, said he was asleep along with his children in the open when gunfire awoke them. He said he heard heavy gunfire and bomb explosions at intervals.

Mohammad Raza Pervaiz, another resident, said police and Rangers fired several rockets at the house. The suspects fired back and hurled hand-grenades on security officials.

He said that at about 9.15am, security officials threw cell phones into the house to communicate with the suspects as voices of some children and women were heard.

Raza said the cross-fire stopped for some time, but started again and the suspects hurled grenades outside. He said the suspects would use a deserted way along a drain situated about 300 metres away, instead of using Raiwind Road.

Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif announced Rs10 million for the family of Sabir Hussain, who was killed in the operation. He also announced Rs1m each for injured constables Mohammad Afzal and Sajid and ASI Muzaffar Hussain.

Meanwhile, Okara police arrested six members of Aqsan Mehboob’s family and some other relatives. They were later handed over to Lahore police.

District Police Officer Baber Bakht Qureshi told Dawn that Mohammad Asghar, his sons and relatives had been picked for questioning.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2014