Pakistani police gun down 6 suspected al-Qaeda militants following raid on their hideout

Pakistan's Okara district police have gunned down six suspected al-Qaeda militants on Wednesday (13 July) following a raid at a hideaway at a village in the district. Police were reportedly tipped off by intelligence reports.

Saud Magsi, the superintendent of police, said the militants killed in the encounter were planning to attack a number of government offices, including the office of the District Police Officer (DPO). However, they managed to foil their plan and have killed the suspected militants.

Two police officers were injured during the gun battle with the suspected militants at the village 28/2R. The injured officers were shifted to district headquarters (DHQ) hospitals Mian Channu and Khanewal. Explosives, detonators, Kalashnikovs — Russian sub-machine guns, and a map of the DPO's office were recovered from the hiding place of the suspected militants.

The raid followed an extensive military-led operation in South Punjab a few months ago, during which police reportedly arrested 77 hardcore members of five notorious gangs. They also claimed to have recovered a huge cache of weapons and ammunition during the three-month long operation, The Dawn reported.