Security forces have thwarted a major terrorist plot in the federal capital, preventing a Bannu Cantonment–style suicide attack on a sensitive installation ahead of Defence Day. According to intelligence reports, timely intervention by a civilian intelligence agency led to the arrest of a would-be suicide bomber along with key facilitators who had been planning the attack. The plot was orchestrated by a network previously led by Noor Wali Mehsud, with operational responsibility assigned to a man from Qila Abdullah district of Balochistan.
Investigators disclosed that the commander, who had earlier worked in Islamabad’s hotel industry before returning to assist his father in tailoring, was now serving as the outfit’s operational head for Islamabad and Rawalpindi. He was tasked with reconnaissance of sensitive sites across the twin cities and had recently travelled to Afghanistan in June, where the final contours of the planned attack were drawn up.
The arrested suicide bomber was identified as an Afghan national who had previously worked as a labourer in Kabul before being recruited by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). According to a senior official involved in the investigation, the bomber received training at the Al-Farooq Fidai Camp in Afghanistan’s Paktika province. His instructor was identified as Mukhlis Yar, also known as Haji Lala, a resident of South Waziristan and a close associate of former TTP chiefs Noor Wali Mehsud and Hakimullah Mehsud.
Both the captured commander and the bomber had graduated from the same training camp, with the commander specifically responsible for surveillance of high-value targets in the capital. Security sources said the foiled attack was intended to create international headlines and inflict wide-scale damage.
Officials confirmed that the swift and precise operation not only prevented a tragedy but also highlighted the continuing threat posed by cross-border sanctuaries. They added that enhanced vigilance and intelligence coordination would remain in place in the run-up to Defence Day to ensure peace and stability in the federal capital.
