Ehsanullah Ehsan, the frontman of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander claims to have escaped the captivity in Pakistan in a purported audio clip circulating on social media. A man, claiming to be Ehsanullah Ehsan, says he succeeded in breaking out from the captivity with his family on 11th January 2020.
Asserting to be associated with TTP and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, the man says he surrendered to the security forces of Pakistan under a covert agreement on February 5th. He said he respected the agreement but alleged that the Pakistan security agencies violated the agreement and kept him in confinement along with his children. He suffered immense hardships in the confinement that compelled him to devise an escape plan.
##TTP former spokesman #EhsanullahEhsan purportedly first audio after fled from the horses’s mouth. pic.twitter.com/MPg5Tyo5Fp
— Nazar Ul Islam (@NaxarUlIslam) February 6, 2020
#EhsanullahEhsan https://t.co/mnErOP5lpt
— Mosharraf Zaidi (@mosharrafzaidi) February 7, 2020
He added that he will soon release the next audio clip in which he will reveal detailed information about his agreement with the security agencies and forces of Pakistan. He added that “I will also mention on whose approval this accord was made and what were the terms and conditions of the agreement and which prominent figure had assured me that the agreement will be implemented.”
However, in an interview with the local media outlet, he claims to be in Turkey with his family. But he refused to share how he broke out of the high-security confinement and made his way to Turkey.
Nothing exposes bankruptcy of Pakistani counter terrorism more effectively than the “surrender “ & “escape” of notorious terrorist and self proclaimed mass murderer #EhsanullahEhsan. The silence of both the selected & the selectors is deafening.Too big an affront to be hidden! https://t.co/jjcy83KUwK
— Afrasiab Khattak (@a_siab) February 7, 2020
He must tell that why he accepted the responsibility of attacking Malala Yousafzai and who asked him to accept responsibility of planting a bomb under my car??? https://t.co/dFAuSXGASu
— Hamid Mir حامد میر (@HamidMirPAK) February 6, 2020
“I can’t tell you more but I can tell you that I am in Turkey at the moment along with my wife, son, and daughter. Don’t ask me how I reached here as I can’t tell you right now,” said TTP commander.
Meanwhile, the BBC asserted that ISPR has refused to comment on the controversy. They have neither confirmed or denounced the news. Moreover, the analysts stipulate that the suspicious audio clip cannot be upheld until the voice in the audio clip is confirmed to be of Ehsanullah Ehsan.
Without any offical statement from ISPR or Pak army we start blaming them 🙇 hold on Pakistan 🙌 why we are so quick to judge ! #EhsanullahEhsan https://t.co/CA7SLVauyo
— Malik Faizan (@migrantsoul_) February 6, 2020
بی بی سی نے جب اس مبینہ آڈیو پیغام میں کیے گئے دعویٰ پر رد عمل کے لیے پاکستان فوج کے شعبہ تعلقات عامہ سے رابطہ کیا تو فوجی ذرائع نے اس دعویٰ کی تصدیق یا تردید نہیں کی اور کہا کہ وہ ابھی اس بارے میں کچھ نہیں کہنا چاہتے۔#ISPR ????? #EhsanullahEhsan https://t.co/MDDrnQ1xjS
— Arshad Sharif (@arsched) February 6, 2020
Ehsanullah Ehsan, the leading terrorist of TTP, is accused of a deadly assault on Malala Yousafzai-the youngest Nobel Laureate and a dreadful terror attack on APS Peshawar, killing 134 students.
Ehsanullah Ehsan even stoked communal tensions in Pakistan; he is charged with killing the prominent members of the Shia community in Rawalpindi and Karachi. He even targeted the nine foreign tourists along with their guide in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Read more: Pulwama: “Opportunity” to exploit or “Events Manufactured” to tailor strategy?
He was involved in a suicide attack near Wagah Border and the 2016 bombing of Easter gathering in Lahore that killed 75 people and injured 300. He is even accused of attempting to kill journalist Hamid Mir when he planted a bomb under his car in Islamabad.
About 10 days before escaping #EhsanUllahEhsan got his wife and children out on the pretext of visiting her parents/family. On 11th Jan 2020 he pretty much walked out of the back door of his official residence in Peshawar. Currently he is in Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/3MLjACup1j
— Azaz Syed (@AzazSyed) February 6, 2020
An uproar followed the alleged audio clip on Twitter as several journalists and analysts asked how a notorious TTP terrorist, charged with killings innocent Pakistani civilians, can escape the highly secured confinement.
Read more: APS Terrorism: Pakistan’s 9/11
But a small video clip of former DG ISPR Asif Ghafoor popped up on social media from a press conference in 2017 in which he declared the surrender of TTP commander Ehsanullah Ehsan in redemption. He likened his surrender to the success of Pakistan Armed Force’s lethal and relentless military operation against terrorists slackened their presence and network in Pakistan.
Back in April 2017 when #EhsanullahEhsan turned himself in to security agencies, this was the official & on-record statement of the ISPR. pic.twitter.com/PvWBFD18Mf
— Siyar Ali Shah (@iSiyarAliShah) February 6, 2020
#Turkey must ensure #EhsanullahEhsan is handed over back to #Pakistan. It should be investigated how he reached turkey. All people behind his escape including him must be publically hanged. Why he was even kept alive ?@OfficialDGISPR@ImranKhanPTI @RTErdogan @rterdogan_ar pic.twitter.com/EeeFYsP4d9
— M.Zahaib Nabeel (@zahaibnabeel) February 7, 2020
Back in 2017, the Pakistan Army publicized his confession statements in which Ehsanullah Ehsan claimed working for India’s spy agency RAW(Research and Analysis Wing). He even denounced his TTP leaders for exploiting and abusing the youth on the pretext of Islam and Jihad. There is a facade in the statements and conducts of TTP leaders.
The story, however, is developing and the official statement from ISPR is awaited on the controversy.