Punjab CTD arrests 18 suspected militants planning terror attacks
Pakistan’s Punjab police arrested 18 suspected militants linked to banned terrorist organisations during more than 100 intelligence-based operations carried out across the province over the past week, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) said on Saturday, August 22.
The suspects were arrested from Faisalabad, Sialkot, Sargodha, Sahiwal, Hafizabad, Gujranwala, Bhakkar, Lahore and Multan. Police said they were allegedly associated with groups including ISIS, Al-Qaeda and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The CTD said the suspects were allegedly preparing to carry out terrorist activities in Punjab. More than 3 kg of explosives, eight detonators, 13.1 feet of safety fuse, 4.5 feet of prima cord, four pistols and 21 rounds of ammunition were recovered during the operations.
Cases have been registered against the arrested suspects, and further investigations are underway, the department said.
The arrests come amid intensified counter-terrorism operations in Pakistan. In a separate development this week, Pakistani security forces said they killed 49 militants in intelligence-led operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
Punjab’s CTD has regularly conducted intelligence-based operations targeting suspected militant networks. In September 2025, the department reported arresting 89 suspected terrorists during 940 such operations over three months.
