12 arrested over Pak shrine blasts

Pakistani law enforcement agencies have arrested 12 suspects in connection with the twin suicide bombings at a famous Sufi shrine here and recovered sophisticated weapons and explosives from them, an official said today.

Pakistani law enforcement agencies have arrested 12 suspects in connection with the twin suicide bombings at a famous Sufi shrine here and recovered sophisticated weapons and explosives from them, an official said today.

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The suspects included "suicide bombers and their handlers," a Punjab government spokesman said.

"They are key members of a number of gangs involved in major incidents of terrorism in the province," the spokesman
said.

Those arrested included terrorists and their accomplices who were allegedly involved in attacks on other places of
worship and on a mosque at Parade Lane in Rawalpindi.

A huge quantity of sophisticated weapons and explosives as well as uniforms of various security agencies were
recovered from the arrested persons, he said.

"Similarly, valuable information about various gangs of terrorists has been received," he said.

The Punjab government believes the arrest of these "terrorists and saboteurs" is "a big achievement" that will
help in curbing terrorism, he added.

Forty-five people were killed and over 200 injured when two suicide bombers blew themselves up on Thursday night in
Data Darbar, the shrine of Persian Sufi saint Ali Hajweri, considered the patron saint of Lahore.