Rawalpindi clashes: Protests in major cities end peacefully
In Karachi, 15,000 people attended an ASWJ rally.
Supporters of Ahle Sunnat Wal-Jmaat chant slogans during a protest in Quetta on November 22, 2013. PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Thousands of hardline Pakistani religious activists held protest rallies on Friday following sectarian violence last week which killed at least 11 people, amid unusually tight security across major cities.
Sectarian clashes had erupted in Rawalpindi last week as an Ashura procession passed along its predetermined route. As the clash intesified, the markets in Raja Bazaar were set ablaze by unknown men. The severity of clashes had prompted authorities to impose curfew in Rawalpindi.
On Friday, schools, shops and restaurants were closed in the city while the roads bore a deserted in both Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
A heavy contingent of police, paramilitary rangers and soldiers was deployed in Rawalpindi, along with other major cities including Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Multan.
In Rawalpindi, Maulana Ahmad Ludhianvi, who leads Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) organisation said: "We know how to fight against enemies of Islam and we are fighting against them."
In Quetta, up to 2,000 activists gathered to protest. The protest was led by local ASWJ leader Ramzan Mengal.
Similar scenes were seen in Peshawar, where some 4,000 people answered ASWJ's call at the city's Shobha Bazaar. Protests were also seen in Lahore.
In Karachi, as many as 15,000 people attended an ASWJ rally.
Despite the show of emotion during the protests, they culminated peacefully with no damage to property reported.
Shops, restaurants and petrol stations in the city along the protest routes remained closed and roads were deserted amid a heavy deployment of police and paramilitary troops, an AFP reporter said.
Police have used shipping containers to block certain roads in the capital Islamabad and Rawalpindi, while the approaches to the diplomatic enclave, which houses foreign embassies, were sealed.
Umar Hayat Lalika, regional police chief for Rawalpindi told reporters that police had arrested 24 suspects including a few police officials, adding they were being interrogated.
Thousands of hardline Pakistani religious activists held protest rallies on Friday following sectarian violence last week which killed at least 11 people, amid unusually tight security across major cities.
Sectarian clashes had erupted in Rawalpindi last week as an Ashura procession passed along its predetermined route. As the clash intesified, the markets in Raja Bazaar were set ablaze by unknown men. The severity of clashes had prompted authorities to impose curfew in Rawalpindi.
On Friday, schools, shops and restaurants were closed in the city while the roads bore a deserted in both Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
A heavy contingent of police, paramilitary rangers and soldiers was deployed in Rawalpindi, along with other major cities including Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Multan.
In Rawalpindi, Maulana Ahmad Ludhianvi, who leads Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) organisation said: "We know how to fight against enemies of Islam and we are fighting against them."
In Quetta, up to 2,000 activists gathered to protest. The protest was led by local ASWJ leader Ramzan Mengal.
Similar scenes were seen in Peshawar, where some 4,000 people answered ASWJ's call at the city's Shobha Bazaar. Protests were also seen in Lahore.
In Karachi, as many as 15,000 people attended an ASWJ rally.
Despite the show of emotion during the protests, they culminated peacefully with no damage to property reported.
Shops, restaurants and petrol stations in the city along the protest routes remained closed and roads were deserted amid a heavy deployment of police and paramilitary troops, an AFP reporter said.
Police have used shipping containers to block certain roads in the capital Islamabad and Rawalpindi, while the approaches to the diplomatic enclave, which houses foreign embassies, were sealed.
Umar Hayat Lalika, regional police chief for Rawalpindi told reporters that police had arrested 24 suspects including a few police officials, adding they were being interrogated.