Pakistani Taliban splinters say they carried out strike
6 Nov 2014 4:37 AM IST
Militant outfits Jundullah and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) that separately claimed responsibility for Sunday’s blast near Wagah border were both associated with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan that was commanded by Hakimullah Mehsud until he was killed in an American drone strike on 1 November, 2013.
While JuA has threatened India before, the Pakistani state, minority communities and minority Muslim sects — Shias and sufis — have been Jundullah’s prime targets. Sources said Jundullah chief Hamja Jofi alias Haji Mumtaz founded the group in 2003 in Waziristan and was later killed in a drone strike.
Thousands have been killed in its attacks on the country’s armed forces, spy agencies, market places and mosques beginning 2009.
The group took responsibility for the failed Times Square car bombing attempt in 2010, but retracted days later. Experts doubt its ability to strike overseas, saying it lacks the expertise to do so. But the Karachibased group has been a brutal force within the state.
On 22 September, 2013, a twin suicide bomb attack that killed 127 at a Peshawar church and was the worstever attack on Christians in Pakistan was Jundallah’s work.
While JuA has threatened India before, the Pakistani state, minority communities and minority Muslim sects — Shias and sufis — have been Jundullah’s prime targets. Sources said Jundullah chief Hamja Jofi alias Haji Mumtaz founded the group in 2003 in Waziristan and was later killed in a drone strike.
Thousands have been killed in its attacks on the country’s armed forces, spy agencies, market places and mosques beginning 2009.
The group took responsibility for the failed Times Square car bombing attempt in 2010, but retracted days later. Experts doubt its ability to strike overseas, saying it lacks the expertise to do so. But the Karachibased group has been a brutal force within the state.
On 22 September, 2013, a twin suicide bomb attack that killed 127 at a Peshawar church and was the worstever attack on Christians in Pakistan was Jundallah’s work.
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