ISLAMABAD: Security agencies have arrested 11 individuals linked to the recent suicide bombing in Islamabad, including the Afghan national identified as the mastermind behind the attack, sources confirmed.
According to security officials, the arrested mastermind has ties to ISIS, which planned and executed the attack, provided training, and carried out the radicalisation of the bomber. Authorities said six facilitators two of them Afghan nationals were taken into custody from Nowshera. In Rawalpindi, three suspects were arrested, including the suicide bomber’s mother, while another facilitator who coordinated via phone was apprehended in Karachi.
Sources warned that ISIS, operating with the backing and shelter of the Afghan Taliban, along with other militant groups, continues to pose a serious threat to regional stability and peace.
The arrests were made during intelligence-based operations relying on both technical surveillance and human intelligence. During one such operation, a soldier embraced martyrdom while three others sustained injuries. Officials said counterterrorism operations remain ongoing across multiple locations.
Investigators revealed that the attacker travelled to Islamabad from Nowshera on the day of the incident, entering the capital via the Khanna route from Rawalpindi. The individual who guided the attacker was reportedly connected to Fitna-ul-Khawarij networks operating out of Afghanistan.
Further investigation showed that the suicide bomber had travelled to Afghanistan on at least seven occasions and was carrying explosives strapped to both his legs and chest at the time of the attack.
The suicide bombing, which occurred during Friday prayers, claimed the lives of 33 people and left more than 160 injured. The attacker detonated himself at the mosque entrance after being prevented from entering the premises.
