Afghan mastermind behind Tarlai Kalan suicide attack arrested

2026-02-07 - 10:26

ISLAMABAD – The police and law enforcement agencies on Saturday arrested the Afghan mastermind behind the suicide attack at an imambargah and Jamia Masjid Khadijat-ul-Kubra in Tarlai Kalan, Islamabad. The security sources said the major progress has been made in the investigation of yesterday’s blast, which killed 33 people and injured over 150. The Intelligence and law enforcement agencies conducted targeted raids in Peshawar and Nowshera, resulting in multiple arrests. The operations, carried out based on both technical and human intelligence, led to the capture of four facilitators who had assisted the suicide attacker. The officials confirmed that the mastermind is an Afghan national affiliated with the banned terrorist organization ISIS. The police and other law enforcement officials say that the investigation is underway to identify any remaining accomplices and to uncover the full network behind the attack. Following the incident, the security across Islamabad has been tightened, and the citizens have been urged to remain vigilant. Funeral prayers offered for 15 martyrs of imambargah suicide blast The funeral prayers were offered on Saturday for 15 people martyred in a suicide bombing at an imambargah in the federal capital. The funeral prayers for 13 martyrs were held at the G-9 Imambargah, attended by Federal Ministers Tariq Fazal Chaudhry and Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, Raja Khurram Nawaz, Inspector General of Islamabad Police, a large number of citizens, and senior religious scholars representing different schools of thought. The strict security arrangements were put in place in and around the funeral venue. The prayers were led by Secretary General of Nifaz-e-Fiqh-e-Jafaria and Imam of Jamia Masjid Khadijat-ul-Kubra, Allama Basharat. After the funeral prayers, the bodies of the martyrs were dispatched to their native areas for burial. Separately, the funeral prayers for two other martyrs were offered at Imambargah Jamia Sadiq, where Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas was also present. The prayers were led by Agha Sheikh Muhammad Shifa Najafi while a heavy police contingent remained deployed to ensure security. World condemns deadly suicide bombing at Islamabad imambargah