Updated on
Summary
Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) released a list of names of 119 most wanted persons. The names include those involved in attacks on Benazir Bhutto, Pervez Musharraf and on the Marriott Hotel. However, the list does not include names of prominent Taliban leaders. Although the list formulated with the assistance of intelligence officials working with provincial police departments is not complete, it includes sufficient information on suspected militants. The published list, also known as the red book, includes details on the most dangerous individuals and has been put together with the assistance of provincial police departments and Islamabad police. Wanted persons from the four provinces and Islamabad have been mentioned but there is no mention of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistans leadership. The list includes the names of 25 wanted individuals from Punjab, 24 from Sindh and 18 from Balochistan. Surprisingly, the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) has the least number of wanted individuals (16). This is despite the fact that the province has been the hardest hit by militancy. An important name in the list is that of Attocks Abdur Rahman, the report said. According to the red book, Abdur Rahman was involved in the attack on Benazir Bhutto on the instructions of former Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan chief Baitullah Mehsud. Similarly, the red book says Rana Ashfaq Ahmed, wanted in the attack on Islamabads Marriott Hotel, was associated with Qari Saifullahs group in Waziristan. Ahmed has been accused of sheltering the suicide bomber involved in the attack on Marriott Hotel. He has also previously worked as a driver to Maulana Alam Tariq, the brother of former Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) chief Maulana Azam Tariq.The book also details identification information on the wanted indiviuals and there are cases in which photographs are also available.
