By KUNA
Islamabad : As the minority Shiite population of Pakistan began mourning processions on Saturday, 9th Muharram, authorities claimed to have busted several gangs of militants and arrest of suicide bombers in eastern and southern parts of the country.
Muharram, the mourning month commencing Islamic New Year, has always been the victim of heightened tension but this time in Pakistan owing to political and security instability, one of the worst in countrys history, security agencies were extra vigilant to maintain law and order situation.
Inspector General of Sindh Police Azhar Farooqi addressing a press conference in Karachi port city said that police while foiling a big terrorist bid has arrested five suspects including a suicide bomber.
He also showed about 10 kilograms of seized explosive materials, confiscated weapons and cyanide poison to the press. He added that all the arrested militants had been trained in Mir Ali area of North Waziristan tribal agency, bordering Afghanistan.
Also, police claimed arresting four more militants of an extremist group from Hyderabad city of Sindh province.
In Rawalpindi, police sources told KUNA that about four suspected militants including a woman were arrested from a mourning procession.
Sources said one of them was a suicide bomber but when contacted the interior ministry had no information in this regard.
Similar reports of militant arrests were also received from Quetta, the capital of insurgency-hit Baluchistan province. Police sources said that at least two suspected suicide bombers have been arrested.
A teenaged suicide bomber on Thursday blew himself up in an Imambargah in Peshawar killing as many as 12 persons including four policemen and wounding near three dozen of others.