Four Karachi bus attackers linked to 'al-Qaeda sleeper cell': Pakistan

Karachi: Four militants arrested by Pakistan police in connection with the last week's Karachi bus attack that killed 45 minority Shia Ismaili Muslims are linked to a sleeper cell of al-Qaeda, an investigator said today.

"They have all studied from reputed institutions and one of them who is the mastermind (Tahir Hussain Minhas) of the Ismaili killings has personally met Osama bin Laden and Aiman al-Zawahari in the past," a senior police officer told PTI.

He said that the four militants are linked to a sleeper cell of al-Qaeda. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Khan said the militants have confessed their involvement in the May 13 attack in which militants donning police uniforms gunned down 45 Shia Ismaili Muslims, including 16 women in country's volatile Karachi city, claimed by the dreaded ISIS terror group.

The militants were also behind the killing of Sabeen Mahmud, a prominent Pakistani rights activist who was shot dead by the motorcycle-borne gunmen while on her way home with her mother on April 24. The attack was masterminded by Saad Aziz alias Tin Tin alias John.

Minhas alias Sain Nazir alias Mota-matriculate has been involved in terror activities since 1998.

"He (Minhas) is a trained terrorist who has expertise in making bombs and using arms such as RPG-7 and Kalashnikov," the officer said.

Aziz, a BBA graduate, has been involved in terrorist activities since 2009.

"He also produced Jihadi literature and provided funds for terror activities in the city," the police official said. The official said these "well-educated" criminals have confessed to carrying out grenade attacks on schools, bomb attacks on police vans, a naval officer and a Rangers brigadier, a gun attack on an American educationist Debra Lobo and targeted killing of police officials.

The Chief Minister has said the police have seized three Kalashnikov rifles, seven 9mm rifles, five grenades, seven laptops, explosive material and terrorism literature.