Breaking: Remaining Pakistan Insurrection Leader Offers To Surrender Himself And All Of His Followers Just Before Army’s Final Assault On Mosque. And The Government Has Now Offered 5000 Rupis To Anyone Who Surrenders
After his Burqa-wearing brother was arrested yesterday, the insurrection’s remaining leader, Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi, offered to surrender everyone to a third party, the Ulema Commitee. The Government rejected that, and said they want to take him into custody directly. Developing.
Story from today’s Pakistan Observer:
Islamabad—The security forces have arrested the chief cleric and the mastermind of the Lal Masjid drive Maulana Abdul Aziz on Wednesday evening while attempting to escape wearing burqa and his brother Maulana Abdur Rashid Ghazi has agreed to surrender before the ulema committee, but the government rejected the involvement of the third party.
Following the arrest of his brother and the surrender by hundreds of his ‘self-proclaimed’ devotees, Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi found himself in lurch, who later agreed to surrender and evacuate the nearby Children Library, occupied by the seminary students since January this year.
Ghazi expressed his willingness to surrender during his meeting with a delegation of Ulema reached there for reconciliation between the government and hardcore administration of the seminary.
Later, he also contacted the government high-ups to assure them of his surrender along with hundreds of students and evacuate the library.
However, the cleric put the condition that he would not surrender before the security forces.
Owing to the threat of massive loss of lives, the government had been extending the deadline for the seminary students to evacuate the seminary and offered them the amnesty if they surrender.
The government’s offer proved soothing to several male and female students who were detained in the seminary either scared of arrest or being forced by the clerics to stay.
On Wednesday morning, a combination of women in black burqas and bearded young men streamed out of the compound and passed through metal detectors to give themselves up, but hundreds more stayed inside.
The government also announced Rs5,000 assistance for every person leaving the seminary as travel allowance.
Some of the female students were picked up by their parents while for the others the government arranged transportation. Several of the leaving female students told media that they were being kept inside the seminary against their will and were being forced to take part in self-waged jihad.
The loudspeaker of the mosque blared and appealed students not to leave their fellows at the decisive moment. The anonymous speaker also said that there is no bar on the students willing to leave.
The government officials maintained that they expected more surrenders from the students.
“We expect most of the women and more men will come out, then only the hardcore will be left inside. Our estimate is the militant element is only a couple of hundred,” Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Cheema said.
More than 1,000 people, including men, women and children, had left the mosque but between 2,000 and 5,000 people remained inside, said State Minister for Information Tariq Azim.
Others pledged to continue the mosque’s struggle for the enforcement of Islamic law, like the one installed by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, which lasted from 1996 until the US-led invasion in 2001.
“It is not necessary to carry out jihad (holy war) right now. We can fight another day,” said Mohammad Ibrahim from the northwestern town of Batagram.
The gunship helicopters hovered several times around the seminary and the government has also called in more troops from other provinces.
Criminal cases have also been registered against the brother clerics under murder and terrorism charges for their alleged involvement in Tuesday’s killings.
About 1,000 personnel of the Punjab Police have been called to Islamabad, while about 500 Elite Force personnel have also been called from Jhelum.
The bomb disposal squad has reached the area of Lal Masjid. According to details, the bomb disposal squad is searching for any weapon and explosive material on the streets around Lal Masjid.
In Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and members of Federal Cabinet strongly condemned the suicide attack on convoy of security forces and categorically stated that such type of acts would not weaken the government’s intention to fight against terrorism. The meeting said that those involved in the anti-state activities would be taken to task.
Trouble began in February when students occupied a library to protest against the demolition of mosques built illegally on state land. They later kidnapped women, some Chinese women from on charges of spreading obscenity. They also abducted police.
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Looking at a map to reorient myself, this seems to be quite a victory in the middle east! Seeing as how our fighting men and women are stomping out what’s left of aQ and other wannabe jihadimartyrs in Afghanistan and Iraq, and Pakistan seems to be getting their shit in order, we’ve got the snake trapped in his corner. God I don’t want to see us go to war with Iran/Venezuela/North Korea. My prayers are with you all over there!
July 4th, 2007 at 10:36 pmMusharraf is a brave man.
July 4th, 2007 at 10:52 pmThese guys are pussies! Shiat, they’re almost as bad as our democratic presidential hopefuls. (and that’s fucking bad!)
Are you paying attention, all of you Jihadi cocksuckers? If your leaders are too chicken shit to blow themselves up, why do you sacrifice yourselves to a cause that can’t win and a God that doesn’t care?
You are all mindless followers destined to die for NOTHING!
Come get some.
July 4th, 2007 at 11:08 pm“Musharraf is a brave man.”
Musharraf was a former Special Forces officer, he knows exactly how and when to use proper force
July 4th, 2007 at 11:13 pmBeware those in berkas with big feet. See them also here in Philadelphia. Used to just have to worry about drag queens with big adams apples. What’s the world coming to?
July 5th, 2007 at 2:19 ammusharraf is the best example of how some predominantly muslim states need dictators to maintain sanity. I wish it werent true, but democracy in some countries such as these,would only become sharia dictatorships eventually as the minority looneys intimidate everyone else into submission.
kill as many as you can and watch closely the rest.
July 5th, 2007 at 2:49 amAs long as his military backs him up Musharf will stay in power. Pakistan has not evolved to the stage where an elected individual can control the country. 40% of that population still wants a Sharia state. Imagine a Pakistan run by an OBL with nukes?
Pakistan, like the rest of the Arab world is not ready for democracy. Case in point: Recent Palestinine elections.
All of these countries are too caught up in 7th century thinking to be integrated into some kind of Western governing solution.
Even after we win the GWOT, these idiots will still need a “King” not a President or a Prime Minister to lead their countries. Muslims are just too stuck in the past, or on stupid, to accept modernity as a option of free governance.
July 5th, 2007 at 5:11 amjohnny you take attention to the wrong images,
look
July 5th, 2007 at 12:15 pmFrance, merci, very, very beaucoup.
July 7th, 2007 at 12:39 am