ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday said the suicide bombing outside Islamabad’s Judicial Complex earlier this month was planned and directed from Afghanistan, with the attacker himself confirmed to be an Afghan national linked to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, speaking at a detailed press conference in Islamabad, said investigators had uncovered “clear and irrefutable evidence” that the Nov. 11 attack — which killed 12 people and injured 35 — was masterminded by TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud from Afghan territory.
“This attack was planned inside Afghanistan, executed through Afghan handlers, and facilitated by TTP commanders operating openly across the border,” Tarar said.
Four facilitators arrested; handler’s confession aired
Tarar said Pakistan’s Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) arrested four facilitators within 48 hours: Sajidullah alias Sheena, Kamran Khan, Muhammad Zali, and Shah Munir.
A video confession of Sajidullah, the main handler, was played during the briefing. According to investigators, Sajidullah joined the TTP in 2015, received training at camps inside Afghanistan, and maintained encrypted communication with TTP commander Daadullah.
Tarar said Sajidullah travelled to Afghanistan in August 2025, meeting Daadullah in Kunar and then in Kabul, where he received operational orders delivered directly from TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud.
“Sajidullah arranged the bomber’s suicide vest,” Tarar said. “He brought the Afghan bomber, Usman Shinwari, to the target area and provided him with the explosives.”
Bomber identified as an Afghan national
The minister confirmed that Usman Shinwari, the attacker who blew himself up in Islamabad’s G-11 area, was a resident of Nangarhar, Afghanistan.
“These terrorists failed to reach their primary high-security targets in the capital,” Tarar added. “By the grace of God, a far larger tragedy was averted.”
Pakistani officials say the operation was carried out by Fitna-ul-Khawarij, a TTP-linked network that Islamabad describes as an Indian-sponsored and Afghan-facilitated militant structure responsible for recent attacks in the northwest, including the assault on Wana Cadet College.
“This entire plot was directed from Afghan soil. Their handlers, trainers, and leadership are operating freely there,” Tarar said, criticising Kabul’s failure to rein in groups targeting Pakistan.
Pakistan has witnessed a sharp resurgence in terrorist attacks since the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan in 2021. Most attacks have targeted security personnel and civilians in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, with militant infiltration and cross-border strikes becoming more frequent.
