Two terrorists killed 16 arrested in Punjab province of Pakistan

Lahore, Dec 17 (PTI) Two terrorists were killed and 16 others, including a key commander of TTP, were arrested in Punjab province of Pakistan, police said on Tuesday.
     A statement from the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) said that a joint operation with police was launched at the border area of Punjab-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
     “Terrorists attacked the police team with hand grenades, rockets and heavy weapons in the Kotani Tal area. The police team returned the fire in which two terrorists were killed earlier on Tuesday,” it said.
     Separately, the CTD thwarted a major terrorism plot in Punjab, arresting 16 terrorists linked to banned several organisations during intelligence-based operations (IBOs) across the province over last seven days.
     Among those arrested is a key commander of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Umar.
     “Umar is a highly dangerous terrorist captured in Lahore. Umar hails from North Waziristan and was reportedly involved in orchestrating attacks in key urban centres,” the CTD statement said.
     The arrested suspects were planning coordinated attacks on important buildings in Lahore and other cities.
     Rocket launchers, hand grenades, and other modern and heavy weapons were recovered from the terrorists, it said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)