Counter-terrorist police raided a building in Lahore on Sunday and arrested three men affiliated with Islamic State or Daesh who were planning to attack government buildings, authorities said on Monday. The raid came as police said that the Pakistani Sunni extremist group Lashkar e Jhangvi had been seeking to build relations with Islamic State before LeJ chief Malik Ishaq was killed last July. Lahore´s counter terrorism department said in a statement that their agents seized 1.5 kg of explosives and detonators apart from arresting the three men. The CTD named the three arrested men but gave no details of how they were connected to Islamic State. Two senior security officials told Reuters that Islamic State and LeJ leader Ishaq had been in contact with each other since 2014 and were seeking to establish a foothold for Islamic State operations in Pakistan. While the government is still in a state of denial regarding the massive threat posed by IS and other extremists groups that are getting a stronghold in Pakistan, government needs to understand that it is not necessary for IS to physically shift to Pakistan. Rather, IS can wage a war using its “local” sympathisers and supporters who live amidst ordinary Pakistanis spewing their agendas of hatred and bigotry. There is no shortage of radically brainwashed minds in Pakistan whose allegiance with the most notorious terrorist group of recent times would be enough to let loose hell in the country. Instead of denying the presence of terrorist organisations in Pakistan, government and security agencies must be prepared to give an immediate response and nip the terror in the bud. Along with the continuation of the Operation Zarb-e-Azb in restive areas, there is a need to implement the National Action Plan across the country. The government must work on ensuring that that the situation does not get out of control. All civil and military institutions must act as a unit against the threat of militancy. It is necessary for the government to ensure that IS does not get sympathisers in Pakistan. If IS wins the support of the TTP splinter groups as well as other local banned outfits, there is no limit to the devastation that could cause. Therefore, the government needs to be alert and responsive against IS and other militants whose only aim is to spread terror in Pakistan and in any other country where they could lay their hands, bombs and guns on.
pk.shafaqna.com
