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Mohmand tribesmen protest arrest of elders
Enraged protesters smashed the gates of agency offices, fired shots in the air and blocked the Peshawar-Bajaur highway for four hours on Tuesday in reaction to police action against tribal elder Malik Rehman and his brother Malik Abdul Ahad, who were arrested after a scuffle with a levies official in the tehsildar office.A few days ago Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Halimzai tehsil ameer Roohullah reportedly found a levies official, Wajid, selling fake currency in the bazaar. He handed the official over to political authorities along with the counterfeit money. The political authorities, however, released the official. The JI ameer and the tehsildar exchanged heated words over the issue. Consequently, the tehsildar ordered the JI leaders arrest. The JI leader fled the scene. Later, tribal elder Malak Rehman, and another levies official, Amjad Ali, became entangled in another heated exchange over the arrest order for the JI ameer. This led to the political authorities arresting Rehman and his brother. Locals took to the streets when they heard about Rehmans arrest. They attacked agency offices in Ghalanai, resorted to aerial firing and staged a sit-in in front of the political authorities jail. Political Agent Sher Alam Mehsood released Rehman at around 4:00 pm. After his release, Rehman announced that this marked the end of cooperation with the political authorities, and called for a strike in Mian Mandi bazaar until Assistant Political Agent Islam Zeb was transferred. Posted by: Fred 2007-06-20 |
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