Police killed one suspected member of the Taliban and seized a truckload of automatic weapons and explosives after a five-hour shootout on Saturday at a madrassa in Dera Ghazi Khan. Security forces stormed the madrassa after receiving a tip that insurgents loyal to Baitullah Mehsud were hiding out in preparation for an attack, police official Farhat Rasool said. He said the Taliban opened fire on police as they entered, and one insurgent, believed to be Baitullah Mehsud's deputy Abdullah, was killed in the ensuing gunbattle. Two other suspected Taliban were arrested, he added.
"We foiled a major terror plot by seizing bombs, guns, grenades and other weapons," Rasool told The Associated Press. "There is no doubt that these terrorists were associates of Baitullah Mehsud and they were on a mission to carry out attacks." District Police Officer (DPO) Dr Rizwan told APP another two Taliban might have slipped away in the confusion.