ISLAMABAD: The gunmen who killed 10 foreign mountaineers and a local helper in Diamer (Gilgit-Baltistan) in June belonged to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and had been trained in North Waziristan’s town of Miramshah. “The attackers belonged to Tehrik-i-Taliban,” Dr Ata-ur-Rehman, the home secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan, told the Senate’s Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday.

The official placed before the committee a classified report about the incident, which said the attackers were involved in sectarian killings in the country in 2012.

The official said the attackers were trained in Miramshah, which has been a target of US drones. TTP chief Hakeemullah Mehsud was also killed in Miramshah in a drone attack.

The government has sought to start a dialogue with the Taliban in an effort to make them end violence that has claimed thousands of lives. Some initial contacts were made by the two sides before the killing of Mehsud, which left the nascent peace process at a standstill.

Thirteen persons were involved in the heinous plot in which three mountaineers from Ukraine, three from China (including an American of Chinese origin), two from Slovakia, one from Lithuania, one from Nepal and a Pakistani helper were murdered at one of the base camps of Nanga Parbat, the world’s ninth highest mountain. A mountaineer from Latvia escaped unscathed as he was then not present at the camp, while another Chinese survived the attack.

One of the assailants was from Kohistan, while the others were from Diamer.

Most of the attackers are still at large and authorities have been able to apprehend three of the main accused including Qareebullah, identified as the mastermind of the plot. The other two who have been apprehended are Habib-ur-Rehman and Hazrat Bilal.

The arrested persons have confessed to committing the crime, the classified report said. The three were taken into custody from Rawalpindi, Lahore and Quetta.

Outlawed TTP had soon after the incident claimed responsibility for the attack saying it was done to avenge the killing of TTP deputy commander Waliur Rehman in a drone attack by the United States on May 29.

However, Dr Rehman told the Senate committee that the plan to target the foreigners was made in January.

Investigations, he said, had revealed that the attackers’ original plan was to kidnap the foreigners to force fulfilment of their demands, but the scheme went wrong and they killed the tourists.

The group behind the attack was revealed after the security agencies got hold of a local commander of TTP — Mushtaq alias Ghazi who was involved in killing of three senior security officials investigating the murder of the mountaineers.

The attack on foreign tourists was the first of its kind in the region, which is home to some of the world’s highest mountain ranges, but has been affected by sectarian strife.

CHILAS: The authorities have been able to arrest six of the seven persons involved in the Aug 6 attack in which three security officials, Diamer SSP Muhammad Hilal Khan, Lt Col Ghulam Mustafa and Capt Ashfaq, were killed.

Those detained include TTP Diamer-Kohistan Amir Mushtaq alias Ghazi, Hameedullah alias Pehalwan, Liaquat alias Akhtar, Rehmatullah alias Rizwan, Muhammad Nabi Rehmat alias Qari Hasnain Shah and Maulvi Dilbar Khan.

Challan of the six arrested would be presented in an Anti-Terrorism Court in next few days after declaring Abdul Hameed as proclaimed offender, Dr Rehman said.