Pakistan kills mastermind behind 2014 Karachi Airport Attacks

Islamabad: The mastermind behind the Karachi airport terror attacks was killed Sunday during air strikes carried out by Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in North Waziristan, a media report said.

Military sources told Dawn online that Abu Abdur Rehman Almani was a key commander of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), the militant group which along with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility of the attack on Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport last Sunday night that killed 30 people, including 10 militants.

According to reports, some East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) terrorists were also killed during the air strikes.

The East Turkestan Islamic Movement is a separatist militant outfit blamed for numerous terror attacks in China’s restive western region of Xinjiang.

Earlier, Pakistan army bombarded terror hideouts in the country’s mountainous region of North Waziristan  and said over 50 militants were killed. But other media reports put the toll at 150.

Pakistani Jets conducted an aerial strike in North Waziristan Agency’s Datta Khel area, killing at least 50 terrorists, Geo News quoted Pakistan military’s media wing Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) as saying.

A key-member of East Turkistan Islamic Movement, Wilayet bin Hashim besides several other terrorists were among those killed, security sources said.

The air strike, conducted at about 0130 hours Sunday, was carried out based on intelligence about terrorist hideouts in Datta Khel area, an ISPR press release said.

Following confirmed reports about the presence of foreign and local terrorists involved in the Karachi Airport attack, Pakistani jets targeted the hideouts as well as an ammunition dump, it added.

While the ISPR said that over 50 terrorists were killed in the strike, a foreign news agency reported the number to be as high as 150, Geo News added.