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Police arrest five suspected Islamic militants in Pakistan
Lahore, July 05: Police arrested five suspected Islamic militants today, after raiding two houses in the eastern Pakistan city of Lahore, city police chief Khalid Farooq said.
Lahore, July 05: Police arrested five suspected Islamic militants today, after raiding two houses in the eastern Pakistan city of Lahore, city police chief Khalid Farooq said.
The suspects included Maulvi Allah Wasaya, a leader
of outlawed Sunni Muslim militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi,
which authorities have blamed for the killing of hundreds of
minority Shiite Muslims in Pakistan.
The arrest came a day after three suicide bombers killed more than 40 Shiite Muslims in a mosque in southwestern Baluchistan province. The attackers also died in the attack.
It was not immediately clear if the arrests had any connection with yesterday's massacre at the Shiite mosque in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.
``At this stage we can only say that five people are in our custody for their suspected links with the outlawed sectarian groups,'' Farooq told reporters.
President Pervez Musharraf, a key U.S. ally in the war on terrorism, banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi in August 2001 in an effort to purge the country of religious extremism.
Most of the leaders of the group have either been arrested or killed in shootouts with the police. Bureau Report
The arrest came a day after three suicide bombers killed more than 40 Shiite Muslims in a mosque in southwestern Baluchistan province. The attackers also died in the attack.
It was not immediately clear if the arrests had any connection with yesterday's massacre at the Shiite mosque in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.
``At this stage we can only say that five people are in our custody for their suspected links with the outlawed sectarian groups,'' Farooq told reporters.
President Pervez Musharraf, a key U.S. ally in the war on terrorism, banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi in August 2001 in an effort to purge the country of religious extremism.
Most of the leaders of the group have either been arrested or killed in shootouts with the police. Bureau Report