If verified, the claim by the Taliban militant, Sajjid Mohmand, also known by his nom de guerre, Ehsanullah Ehsan, would bring renewed scrutiny to the country’s ties to the group. Yousafzai, who championed girls’ education, was shot on a bus by a Taliban militant on Oct 9, 2012. When Mohmand, who had served as the spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, surrendered in Pakistan in 2017, security forces hailed his arrest as a victory in their counterterrorism operations. But Mohmand told reporters this week that his surrender had been the result of a murky deal he struck with Pakistani forces, and he promised to reveal more information soon. An associate of Mohmand’s and a Pakistani intelligence official supported the claim, saying that the militant had agreed to the surrender in exchange for a large payout by the country’s security forces.

Source: bd News24 February 08, 2020 07:30 UTC