Pakistan's security forces killed six terrorists and captured another alive after foiling a militant attack on a Sindh Rangers compound in Karachi on Saturday night. The assault left four paramilitary personnel dead.
According to security officials, the attackers belonged to Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a faction of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Around 8:30 p.m., the militants rammed a vehicle through the main gate of the Sindh Rangers' Bhittai Wing headquarters in Karachi's Gulistan-e-Jauhar area before storming the compound and hurling hand grenades.
A nearly 90-minute gun battle followed, with Rangers personnel joined by Special Security Unit (SSU) commandos and the Anti-Terrorist Force (ATF). Security forces killed six attackers and captured one injured militant alive. Four Rangers personnel were killed in the attack.
Authorities sealed off the compound and nearby roads during the operation, while residents were urged to remain indoors. Some surrounding neighborhoods experienced power outages as the exchange of gunfire continued.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed responsibility for the attack. The group, which primarily operates in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, has carried out attacks targeting civilians, security forces and government officials.
Sindh Inspector General of Police Javed Alam Odho said preliminary investigations indicated the militants breached the compound by crashing a vehicle through the main gate. Rangers personnel responded immediately, engaging the attackers in a firefight after an explosion was heard at the start of the assault.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah directed senior police officials to submit a detailed report on the incident, while Rescue 1122 Sindh dispatched emergency teams after receiving reports of an explosion near Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 5.
The attack is the first major terrorist strike in Karachi since October 2024, when two Chinese engineers were killed in a suicide bombing near Karachi airport claimed by the banned Balochistan Liberation Army. The last major TTP-linked attack in the city occurred in February 2023, when militants stormed the Karachi Police Office.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Islamabad has repeatedly accused Afghanistan's Taliban government of providing safe haven to TTP militants, allegations denied by Kabul, while Pakistan has carried out strikes on suspected TTP hideouts across the border.
