CTD eliminates Zahid Gul, mastermind behind Kohat Police Lines bombing

The Counter-Terrorism Department announced that a joint security operation in Lakki Marwat’s Walai Sagai sector succeeded in killing Zahid Gul, the senior commander blamed for orchestrating the Sept 18 bombing at Kohat Police Lines. The attack, which involved an explosives-laden vehicle detonating near a mosque followed by an armed assault, claimed the lives of 17 policemen and six civilians. During the overnight clearance, eight militants were eliminated, including Gul, who was affiliated with the khawariji Gul Bahadur network and the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group.

Investigators said Gul had also participated in a Rs6 million bank robbery in Balitang and facilitated the arrival of several suicide bombers in Kohat. He had previously attempted a thwarted attack on the new police lines and plotted assaults on a Pakistan Air Force installation and a police training school. The CTD noted that other operatives from the same network are already in custody.