The lone surviving militant of the Pakistan Army Headquarters siege was linked to the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore and has close links with banned terrorist groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Harkut-ul-Ansar, military officials said on Sunday.
Aqeel alias ‘Dr Usman’, described by military spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas as the leader of the terrorists involved in the attack at the Army headquarters, was captured on Sunday morning when commandos stormed the building, where the attackers were holed up with dozens of hostages.
Four of Aqeel’s accomplices were gunned down by the commandos, who freed 42 hostages. Aqeel was injured when he attempted to set off a large quantity of explosives, Gen. Abbas said.
Military officials said Aqeel was linked to the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore earlier this year in which eight people and 20 others, including players, were injured.