Karachi: The US has offered to help Pakistan
improve the law and order situation in the country`s financial
capital Karachi, which has witnessed a wave of ethnic and
sectarian violence, the Sindh government said Tuesday.
The home minister of Sindh, Manzoor Wassan who met the US
Consul General William Martin said that the US had offered
equipment and other expertise to overcome the situation in the
city.
"The government of Sindh is yet to take any decision on
accepting this offer made by the US consul general," Wassan
told reporters after the meeting.
Around 800 people have been killed in the bouts of
violence and arson attacks in Karachi this year with July
being the bloodiest period when at least 300 people were
killed in ethnic, sectarian and political related violence.
The government recently said it had deployed 1000
Frontier Constabulary soldiers to assist the police and
para-military rangers in quelling the violence in Karachi
which has also been hit by strikes and shutdowns in the last
few months disrupting the economic progress.
The home minister said 15 Armoured Personnel Carriers
(APC) will arrive by the end of August and added the
provincial government would be giving around five billion
rupees to the police to buy new vehicles and equipment.
The struggling police force is understaffed and
underequipped, given the size of Karachi city and the
terrifying spread of crime.
Wassan said action was being taken against all anti-state
elements operating in Karachi and that 101 people had already
been arrested during midnight operations.
Pakistan`s military leaders for the first time yesterday
publicly voiced their concern over the law and order situation
in the country`s financial hub, Karachi.
PTI
