Islamabad

Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist Muhammad Tariq Rafiq, believed to be responsible for the planning and execution of attacks against the Chinese installations in Pakistan and Afghanistan, has been killed, local media reports stated.

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It is being reported that Rafiq, also known as Button Kharab, was killed near Paich Dara, Kunar Province, Afghanistan.

Details surrounding how he was taken down or who was responsible for his killing are still unclear.

“He has gone out of communication since yesterday,” a senior Tehrik-e-Taliban Commander (TTP) told The Khorasan Diary, a news website run by independent journalists, on Tuesday.

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“We can only confirm his death if we see the body,” another TTP commander considered a close aide of Tariq was quoted as saying.

The same information was later confirmed by a Pakistani official, but he did not give further details, The Khorasan Diary reported.

The outlet confirmed the death stating that it has access to a video of Tariq Button Kharab with gunshot wounds.

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Targeted Chinese workers 

Tariq, who is a member of TTP in Pakistan’s Swat Valley, is the main brains behind the suicide bombing that killed nine Chinese workers in northern Pakistan on July 14, 2021.

These Chinese workers were headed for a hydropower project in Dasu Dam, Kohistan.

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According to reports, he was also responsible for escorting and planning attacks in collusion with Balochistan Liberation Army, particularly the female suicide bombing targeting the Chinese language Centre in Karachi, on April 26, 2022.

In recent years, Chinese activities in Pakistan have faced major pushback from separatists and other militants, including several deadly attacks.

There have been increased attacks on Chinese workers, who have been sent to Pakistan to complete infrastructure projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is a sub-sect of the wider Belt and Road initiative.

Beijing has invested more than $65 billion in infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

China has repeatedly urged its “all-weather ally” to do more to protect its interests.

(With inputs from agencies)

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