"We have broken the terror network of LeJ in Punjab province and arrested their six target killers who assassinated at least 18 people, mostly Shia leaders in Lahore and other districts of the province," Lahore police chief Shafiq Ahmed Gujjar said at a press conference here.
"Some other target killers of LeJ are on the run and we soon will arrest them. It has been a great success of the law enforcement agencies and we hope that the arrest of these target killers would help overcome the spate of sectarianism in the province," he said.
Gujjar said the accused claimed to have attacked TV anchor Raza Rumi for his anti-LeJ views last month.
The arrested killers are Abdur Rauf, Sabir Shah, Sheikh Farhan, Shafat Farooqi, Salman Pathan and Muhammad Hashim.
Police said the LeJ accused had killed many Shia leaders including Shabiul Hasan, Syed Abbas Shah, Shakir Ali Rizvi, Ali Haider and his 11-year-old son Murtaza, advocate Arshad Ali Shah, Allama Mubashir Hasan Naqvi, Allama Nasir Abbas Multani, Ali Hasan Qazalbash and Ghulam Raza Jaffery.
Sunni leader Maulana Shamasur Rehman Mauvia was also assassinated by the accused.
LeJ is one of the most active terror groups in Pakistan and is responsible for a string of attacks on Shias. It is also blamed for two deadly bombings targeting Shia Hazaras in Balochistan that killed over 200 people last year.
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