|
Pakistani Police Arrest More Than 1,200 Alleged Extremists
 |
| 1,200 activists arrested in Pakistan |
ISLAMABAD, Jan. 14 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Pakistani police have rounded up more than 1,200 religious activists with hundreds more arrests overnight in a sweeping crackdown against five groups banned by Pakistani President, General Pervez Musharraf, officials said Monday.
The arrests began even before Musharraf announced the crackdown in his landmark address to the nation Saturday, with police moving against Islamic groups in all four of the country's provinces.
An interior ministry official said police had detained more suspects overnight making the total of people arrested since Musharraf's speech to more than 1,200, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Officials also said the banned groups would not be allowed to resume their activities by changing the names of their organizations.
"The moment they try to do that we will go after them and smoke them out," an interior ministry official said.
Earlier, Interior Secretary, Tasneem Noorani, said that 1,141 people had been arrested "on suspicion that they could indulge in activities threatening public peace and obstructing implementation of the orders."
He added police had also "sealed 390 offices of the banned parties across the country."
Authorities estimate less than a million people across the country support the five banned groups -- Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP), Tehreek-i-Fiqa Jafria Pakistan (TJP) and Tehreek-i-Nifaz-e-Shariat Mohammadi (TNSM).
"Collectively their hardcore strength is in thousands," the interior ministry official said.
Musharraf's crackdown against religious and sectarian extremism has been triggered by a military stand-off with India following the December 13 attack on the Indian parliament, which New Delhi alleges was carried out by Lashkar and Jaish.
Lashkar's chief spokesman Abdullah Sayaf commenting on banning his group as saying: "Lashkar-e-Taiba is a Kashmiri organization struggling against Indian occupation forces in occupied Kashmir and government of Pakistan has no right to ban it," Pakistan News online reported.
"The government of Pakistan has no solid evidence or justification against us (Lashkar-e-Taiba) and we at various occasions made it clear that if anybody or country have evidence against us it must made it public," Sayaf said.
The crackdown also comes ahead of a visit by U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell, on his second trip to the region since taking office.
A Pakistani foreign ministry official said: "He will be arriving in Islamabad on January 16 on a one day visit and will hold talks with President Musharraf."
Powell, who will also visit India, Afghanistan and Japan, hopes to convince India to give Musharraf time to carry out his promised crackdown. In turn, he will press Musharraf to turn his words into action.
President Musharraf "has made progress in cracking down on terrorists and extremists," White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said earlier.
On the same note, Indian newspapers hailed Musharraf's address as a watershed in Indo-Pakistani relations, and called on New Delhi to respond with troop cutbacks on the border.
The Times of India described Musharraf's address to the nation on Saturday as a "milestone... the biggest domestic purge by any ruler of Pakistan."
The Indian newspaper welcomed the speech as a "truly promising turn," adding: "India will be advised to reciprocate his gesture by ordering an immediate de-escalation of the military mobilization near the border."
The Indian Express was more cautious, but credited the Pakistani leader for "a masterful balancing act."
"The prospect of a troublesome neighbor suddenly intent upon renouncing terrorism and tackling contentious issues through dialogue has to be enticing," the Express said. "But some troubling thoughts prevent outright endorsement."
|
