New warrant for Baitullah Mehsud

Published April 2, 2008

RAWALPINDI, April 1: A special Anti-Terrorism Court judge has issued non-bailable arrest warrant for Baitullah Mehsud in a case of suicide attack registered with the R. A. Bazaar police in September.

ATC 1 Judge Chaudhry Habibur Rehman directed the R. A. Bazaar police to arrest Baitullah, a resident of South Waziristan, and produce him in the court on April 21, the next date of hearing.

Police had sought the arrest warrant stating that during investigations two arrested men linked Baitullah with the early morning suicide attack that killed some 12 people near the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.

They said they wanted to arrest the man to complete the investigations.

Two other accused, Mohammad Rafaqat and Hasnain Gul alias Ali, were produced in the court and their judicial remand in the R.A. Bazaar case and suicide attack on a police picket near the Army House registered with Civil lines police on October 30 last year was extended till April 21.

Police sought more time to complete their investigations in the cases and to complete the charge-sheet. They said more arrests were expected.

In both cases, the accused are charged with terrorism, murder, attempted murder, criminal conspiracy and other offences.

According to the confessional statement of Mohammad Rafaqat, he and his maternal cousin Hasnain helped Mohammad Usman who carried out a suicide attack on September 4 last year near the GHQ.

He said Hasnain provided him a suicide vest that had been obtained from Qari Ismail of Medressah Haqania of Akorra Khattak. According to Rafaqat, the Qari was working for Baitullah.

He had also confessed that he knew the suicide attacker who blew himself up near a police picket on a road leading to the Army House.

That attack was also carried out at the behest of Qari Ismail. He also revealed that they had tried to attack other places in Rawalpindi but could not succeed.

The cousins were arrested from Westridge police area with explosive materials and were earlier accused of being involved in the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto on December 27.

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