The Pakistan Government imposed a curfew and deployed army around the Lal Masjid early this morning. At least 12 persons were killed and over 150 injured in the gun battle between security forces and inhabitants of the mosque.
Islamabad, July 4 : The Pakistan Government imposed a curfew and deployed army around the Lal Masjid early this morning. At least 12 persons were killed and over 150 injured in the gun battle between security forces and inhabitants of the mosque.
The government told the clerics and militant students of the mosque to surrender along with their weapons and assured them that they would not be harmed, Minister of State for Interior Zaffar Iqbal Warraich told reporters.
If anybody comes out with arms, he will face bullets, Warraich added.
"The decisions of the government would be conveyed to the several hundred militants and the two radical clerics, Abdul Aziz and Abdul Rashid Ghazi," he said while announcing the decision of a high level meeting presided over by President Pervez Musharraf.
The government has asked the residents of the area to be in their home.
The exchange of gunfire comes four days after Musharraf claimed that an operation could be launched against the inhabitants of the mosque.
Musharraf had asked the media to guarantee that the blood of any dead or injured would not be screened on television channels during the operation.
He claimed that militants having links with the Jaish-e-Mohammad and the Al Qaeda were hiding inside the mosque and the seminary.
The female students of the Jamia Hafsa which adjoins the madrassa are said to be prepared for suicide attacks, and up to 500 children were being used as human shields to stop the government from contemplating any operation.
The Lal Masjid has been openly defying the government for months, resulting in a tense stand-off.
Recently, thousands of armed police had surrounded it after several policemen were taken hostage by the students of the madrassa, who demanded the release of at least 36 of their associates being held by the government.
This was followed by taking nine Chinese nationals hostage for allegedly running massage parlour.
Earlier, Lal Masjid clerics and students were at the forefront of a campaign to get women to wear veils, and closing shops promoting western attires and music.
ANI