LAHORE: The Counter Terrorism Department Punjab (CTD) has arrested 26 suspected terrorists during intelligence-based operations carried out in different cities over the past month. Officials said the operations helped prevent possible attacks that were planned to create fear among the public.
According to a spokesperson, the raids took place in several districts, including Lahore, Gujranwala, Sahiwal, Khushab, Mianwali, Bhakkar, Faisalabad, Jhang, Chakwal, Rajanpur, Narowal, Pakpattan, and Sargodha.
During the operations, authorities recovered explosives and other materials, including three improvised explosive devices, detonators, fuse wire, pamphlets, cash, and Prima cards. Officials said some suspects arrested in Lahore were linked to Al-Qaeda, while four militants captured in Sargodha were associated with Fitna al-Khawarij.
The arrested suspects were identified as Irfan, Zaman Ali, Mujahid Ali, Faisal, Shiraz, Nematullah, Osama, Ghulam Yaseen, Yasir, and Imran, among others. Cases have been registered against them, and further investigations are underway.
Separately, the Punjab Police rejected allegations of a fake encounter involving its Crime Control Department, calling the claims baseless.
The officials also revealed that over the past month, CTD conducted 286 intelligence-based operations and more than 4,600 combing operations, questioning over 160,000 individuals and arresting 538 suspects in total. Authorities said the department remains determined to eliminate terrorism and ensure public safety across the province.
