Four suspected militants and a minor child were killed during a raid carried out by Rangers personnel in Karachi's Urdu Bazaar area on Monday night, a press release issued by the paramilitary force said. Lasting nearly seven hours, the targeted operation ended at 2:45am on Tuesday, with one suspected militant shot dead in a shootout with Rangers and three other militants killed in suicide blasts.
Four Rangers personnel were injured in the operation as the suspected terrorists retaliated by throwing grenades and firing during the operation.
The Rangers in a statement said they had arrested a "most wanted" militant of a banned outfit while acting on an intelligence report in Ittehad Town. On the suspect's pointation, Rangers personnel launched a raid on a building in Urdu Bazaar at 7:17pm on Monday.
Upon seeing them, the suspected militants opened fire at the security personnel with automatic weapons and lobbed hand grenades, leaving four Rangers men injured.
When Rangers personnel surrounded the building, the four militants including a woman confined themselves into a room.
A shootout then ensued between the two sides and continued well into the early hours of Tuesday. During this time, the militants also detonated three bombs, the handout said.
One of the militants was killed when he was hit by bullets fired by Rangers personnel while trying to flee, while three other militants blew themselves up, the paramilitary force said. A five-year-old boy present with the militants also died in the blast.
A list issued by the Karachi police surgeon's office later in the day said three men and a woman were brought dead to the Civil Hospital after the Rangers operation, but made no mention of the five-year-old boy mentioned in the Rangers statement. Instead, it said a 2-3 months old baby girl was brought dead along with the other casualties.
Rangers claimed to have recovered a huge cache of automatic weapons, ammunition and hand grenades from the slain militants.
One of the killed militants was identified as Mohammad Zahid, but the other three militants were mutilated beyond recognition due to the blast.
The building was cleared after a thorough search, Rangers said.
Located on M.A. Jinnah road, Urdu bazaar is one of the oldest book markets in Pakistan. The bazaar is a hub for all services related to printing and publishing, with wholesalers selling paper, stationary and other materials required in the publishing industry.
