- Atlanta - Boston - Chicago - DC Area - Houston - Jersey Area - Los Angeles - New York - SF Bay Area
- Earlier editions
- Astrology - Cricket - Money - Movies - Women - India News - US News
The police arrested nearly 150 activists of religious parties on Tuesday for staging a sit-in and protesting the US military strikes against Afghanistan, Online news agency reported.
Jacobabad is one of the airbases being used by the coalition forces to support their operations in Afghanistan.
Emotionally charged activists of prominent religious parties like the Jamaat-e-Islami, the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan and the Jamiat-e-Ulema-i-Islam shouted slogans against the US and President Pervez Musharraf, even as the police struggled to break up the demonstration.
The demonstrators wearing green turbans and traditional Sindhi caps, carried placards demanding that Musharraf quit.
Eyewitnesses said that many of the demonstrators were ruthlessly beaten and baton charged. They said the injured were not taken to hospitals, but to lock-ups in the district headquarters.
Earlier, police in Sukkur had surrounded the airport ahead of the expected arrival of Jamaat-e-Islami chief Qazi Hussein Ahmed and a few other leaders of the Afghan Defence Council. They, however, did not show up.
A number of Jamaat-e-Islami leaders, including its second-in-command, Liaquat Baloch as also Ameer Hamza, Syed Kamal, Sadaullah Soomro, Raza Muhammed Mangrio, Liaquat Memon are already in police custody.
Police raids are underway in Jacobad, Kandhkot, Shikarpur, Gambat and Ranipur, during which 300 leaders and workers of religious parties have been picked up, sources said.
Meanwhile, reports said that the Pakistan government has been urged to take stern action against anti-US protestors by a high level meeting at the Army General Headquarters that was attended, among others, by Pakistan Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider.
"The meeting was of the view that the government should take more stern action against the elements involved in anti-US protests," the sources said.
Haider spent about four hours in the Army General Headquarters and presented a detailed report on the countrywide protests against the government's support for the US-led action against Afghanistan.
It was suggested at the meeting that laws be tightened so that the protests could be stopped.
Indo-Asian News Service
Earlier Report: Pakistan braces for anti-US demonstrations
The War on Terrorism: The Complete Coverage
The Terrorism Weblog: Latest Stories from Around the World
External Link: For further coverage, please visit www.saja.org/roundupsept11.html
Back to top
Tell us what you think of this report
