Al Qaeda commander blows himself up in Karachi

Pakistani authorities on Friday claimed an Al Qaeda commander had blown himself up when he was surrounded by troops during a raid in Karachi.

The Al Qaeda commander, unidentified as Moeed Abdul Salam Al-Yemeni, blew himself up when he was cornered by Pakistan Rangers personnel in an apartment in Gulistan-e-Jauhar area of Karachi early on Friday morning, police officials said.

Paramilitary troops conducted raids at several places in the city as part of a search operation. Officials said Al-Yemeni had recently shifted to Karachi after fleeing the Waziristan tribal region.

A security official had said earlier that the person killed in the blast could be a foreigner. He was living in a rented flat.

Al-Yemeni was reportedly identified by his wife, who was present in the same flat at the time of blast. She told investigators that the flat was hired one-and-half months ago.

The militant commander's widow and four children were detained by security forces. Officials said 33 suspects were arrested during the raids.

Security forces seized nine weapons, ammunition and two stolen vehicles during raids and checking in Mehmoodabad, Jamshed Town, Abdullah Goth, Yousuf Goth, Gadap Town, Lyari Town and Gulshan-e-Iqbal areas.