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Pakistani Islamists Upset Over U.S. Afghan Sanctions
KARACHI (News Agencies) - Islamists in Pakistan Friday threatened U.S. interests here as some 1,500 supporters of religious parties protested against U.N. sanctions on the Afghan Taliban militia.
Police in the capital Islamabad said security had been beefed up to protect U.S. citizens and facilities.
"If the sanctions are not withdrawn, no American installation here, including the U.S. consulate in Karachi, will be safe," Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) central vice-president Abdul Ghafoor Nadim told the demonstrators.
Nadim said his party would not allow U.S. products to be sold anywhere in Pakistan.
The protestors chanted slogans condemning the United States and the United Nations and hailed Taliban chief Mulla Mohammad Omar for rejecting pressure to hand over "Islamic hero Osama bin Laden."
The sanctions, which took effect Friday, are designed to force the Taliban to extradite Saudi millionaire bin Laden, who is wanted for allegedly masterminding two U.S. embassy bombings in East Africa in 1998, which killed more than 220 people.
Qazi Hussain Ahmed, leader of Pakistan's main Islamist party, the Jamaat-i-Islami, said "Pakistanis will not remain silent" over the sanctions and warned that "thousands will die in Afghanistan because of the unjustified U.N. action."
"Why should Osama bin Laden be handed over in the absence of any extradition treaty between the U.S. and Afghanistan?" he asked.
Pakistani Islamic parties last week announced a countrywide boycott of U.S. products and McDonalds fast food outlets from January 26th.
"There will be processions and demonstrations in every major city of Pakistan," said Mufti Jamil, a leader of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party.
A U.S. embassy spokesman in Islamabad said: "We believe that we have taken the necessary steps to ensure the safety of our personnel."
Islamabad police chief Mian Zaheer Ahmad said security had been stepped up in the capital to protect U.S. interests.
"We have augmented the existing security arrangements to protect the American missions and American personnel in Islamabad," he said.
"One should always be prepared to expect anything. Hopefully nothing will happen."
The U.S. embassy in Islamabad was rocketed after the first round of sanctions were imposed in November 1999 and security is usually tight around the complex.
Pakistan has said it would abide by the sanctions but expressed fears they could lead to a humanitarian disaster.
U.N. Security Council members have stressed that the sanctions are political and will have no impact on ordinary Afghans or humanitarian operations in the impoverished country.
The Taliban movement grew out of Islamic schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 1994 and seized Kabul two years later.
They now control most of the country, but are only recognized by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
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