Taliban to target media organisations on Malala coverage

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud has issued special directions to his subordinate terrorists located in different cities of Pakistan to target national and international media organisations, BBC Urdu reported. A responsible official of the Interior Ministry told BBC Urdu on condition of anonymity that intelligence agencies have intercepted the telephonic conversation of Hakeemullah Mehsud with one of his sub-ordinate Nadeem Abbas alias ‘Intiqami’ in which Mehsud was directing Abbas to attack media organisations. Mehsud directed his subordinate to target the offices of media organisations in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and in other cities of the country especially those media organisations and media personalities who were denouncing TTP after attack on child activist Malala Yousufzai.Interior Ministry has issued orders to beef up the security near the offices of media organisations in the country after tracing Mehsud’s call, the official informed. Interior Ministry has also issued directions to the religious scholars, who had publicly denounced the Taliban, to be cautious, the official informed. The government has issued directions to the authorities to deploy additional police troops in the areas where media offices are located and help of Frontier Constabulary (FC) could also be sought if needed, the interior ministry official added. Moreover, the official said that Chief Commissioner Islamabad and chief secretaries of the four provinces have been directed to hold meetings with media owners and address their security concerns. Earlier today, a spokesman for the Swat Taliban has threatened to kill Malala’s father Ziauddin Yousafzai after a failed attempt to assassinate his daughter, said a report by Reuters.