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| India-Pakistan | |||||
| The Assault on the Red Mosque begins | |||||
| 2007-07-10 | |||||
| Troops in Pakistan's city of Islamabad have stormed the Red Mosque, after talks with radicals broke down. "It is a final push to clear the place of armed militants," said military spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad. The army said at 20 militants were killed in the operation, as loud explosions and gunfire were heard. Looks like Perv means business Twenty children escaped from the mosque, where women are also being held. Three soldiers are reported killed and some 20 others injured. C'est la guerre. Good about the kids getting out. Now can someone deprogram them?
Crack of dawn, I like that The troops entered the compound and exchanged fire with the militants holed up inside. It is an anxious wait for those with relatives inside the mosque You do wonder what they were thinking, letting their kiddies go to such a notorious place
The army said 20 militants were killed and another 15 injured. Local medical officials said 20 government troops were injured, and three had died of their wounds after being taken to local hospitals. The army says it has taken over the building's roof. However, it is meeting particularly strong resistance from militants in the basement, reports the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan at the scene. Urban warfare op, the terrs will use every hiding place, lots of booby traps,etc Those inside the mosque are using hand grenades, light machine guns, petrol bombs and other weapons, and the army says it expects the operation will last another four hours. we wouldnt want to desecrate the mosque, now would we? It is not clear exactly how many people were left inside the mosque when the assault began. Talks aimed at resolving the crisis peacefully reportedly broke down over the militants' demand for an amnesty for all inside the mosque. The government wants to detain a number of people on a wanted list, and also a number of foreigners whom it says are inside. and Aziz wouldnt let the AQ biggies go. But dont count on it being a household name "I am returning very disappointed," said former PM Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, after talks conducted by loudspeaker and mobile phone with mosque leader Abdul Rashid Ghazi. "We offered him a lot, but he wasn't ready to come on our terms," said Mr Hussain. well you couldnt offer him 70 virgins and eternal glory, could you? Students at the Red Mosque and its attached religious schools have been defying the authorities for several months in their campaign for Sharia law in the capital.
Law number 1 in Pakistan. Beat up on Shias and Christians, run guns to Afghanistan, blow up liquor stores, but NEVER, NEVER, touch the Chinese On Monday, three Chinese workers were killed in Peshawar in an attack said to be linked to the unrest in Islamabad. There is speculation that Islamic militants may be targeting Chinese people in Pakistan. Proof, as if more were needed,that these folks are insane.
Im glad Im not the only one who sees that At least 21 people have died since fighting erupted when the army surrounded the mosque last Tuesday, including an army commander shot dead inside the mosque on Sunday.
Did they get the body or is he rotting inside? Mosque leader Abdul Rashid Ghazi has denied the presence of any banned extremist groups. "Here? Never. Just little girls. Very heavily armed little girls." He says those inside are students of his religious school and he is in charge. Abdul Rashid Ghazi has said as many as 1,800 followers remained in the mosque, although this cannot be verified. More than 1,000 supporters left last week under mounting pressure from security forces, although only about 20 have left since Friday. Earlier, Mr ul-Haq said up to 250 militants - including foreign radicals - were leading the fighting. | |||||
| Posted by:liberalhawk |
| #19 The general uprising of the Pakistani admirers & worshippers of Osama bin Laden will soon follow. |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2007-07-10 14:20 |
| #18 The assault on the Red Mosque |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2007-07-10 13:45 |
| #17 I'm trying to remember if that is the "red mosque" I was in at 1989. Think there is another in Lahore. If it was, that place is a fortress but apparently not as good as Abdul Rashid Ghazi would have liked because, news flash, the bastard is dead! |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2007-07-10 13:39 |
| #16 Based on the number of people in the mosque, the size of the Pak force and the types of weapons and tactics on both size, the number killed will probably easily exceed 100 and may go over 250. The islamists are already sending out the message that Mush is really an infidel and its everyone's duty to kill him. Most of the population dislikes the islamists but are easily intimidated. If Musharraf is smart, he is already preparing a move against another islamist target in the vicinity of the capital. |
| Posted by: mhw 2007-07-10 13:19 |
| #15 wxjames: Speakie code - NWF is where you Binny and the Doc live - sort of like our old "hole in the wall". Binny is the Queen Bee and controls the coming and goings of his worker bees. No Rummy isn't in charge anymore (thank God). But anyone more concerned about world reaction and casualties will never win any war much less something as difficult as this one. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-07-10 11:39 |
| #14 Perv had multiple reasons to do this. A. he doesnt like these guys, cause theyve tried to kill him. B. The Red mosque was right in the heart of the capital. This was profoundly embarrassing to Perv, and made it look like he wasnt doing anything against the Taliban. He needed to assuage the West C. It was also embarrassing in front of his own people. At a time when the secular opposition is acting up, he cant afford to look weak, and ineffective. This is aimed to shore up his domestic position D. The Red Mosque guys were going after Chinese. China wasnt pleased. Pakistan cannot afford to piss of the West and the Chinese at the same time, given that the relationship to India is none too great. Now having done, this, what does he do in NWFP? The cost of winning in NWFP is much higher, and the payoff somewhat less. OTOH the tribes may start acting up even Perv does nothing up there. Id give it 50-50 whether he starts in on the NWFP again. Even if he does, expect the Paki army to meet with mixed success at best. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2007-07-10 11:16 |
| #13 NWF = North-West Frontier Province, where the rustics live. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2007-07-10 11:03 |
| #12 Rummy's not in charge any more, who is NWF, and what do you refer to as the queen bee ? Other than that, I got every word. |
| Posted by: wxjames 2007-07-10 10:56 |
| #11 Whatever! At least Perv has more balls than Rummy, if you believe the NYTs [which I don't want to do here]. Sooner or later [and I hope it is sooner] will have to do the black op on NWF and screw diplomacy and Paki outrage. If Perv can take out a musk then why can't we summon up the pol/mil courage to go for the queen bee? |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-07-10 10:00 |
| #10 Natural gas is lighter than air. Propane is heavier. |
| Posted by: John J. Simmins 2007-07-10 09:34 |
| #9 I would be all for pouring burning napalm down in the basement. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-07-10 09:27 |
| #8 Well Glenmore they are muzzies afterall. I'd expect the worst. |
| Posted by: jds 2007-07-10 09:18 |
| #7 Can the Pakistanis do a better job than the Russians? Or will we soon be seeing Beslan-style images? Using children - even Islamist children - as hostages or human shields is an abomination. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2007-07-10 08:45 |
| #6 I was thinking for the Iwo Jima approach. Just bulldoze and seal the basement up. |
| Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds 2007-07-10 08:45 |
| #5 "resistance from militants in the basement" Natural gas is heavier than air and if there should happen to be a leak (caused) in the supply line to the stove the gas would accumulate in the lowest places, where a stray spark from an AK-47 being fired would likely set it off in a really pretty fireball. (hint, hint) |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2007-07-10 07:11 |
| #4 No Musharraf, no military action. He's the best of a bad situation. |
| Posted by: gromky 2007-07-10 06:02 |
| #3 Whether Perv's actions are derived from self interest is irrelevant. The fact that the extreme Muzzies keep trying to off him tells me he is doing something right. |
| Posted by: Kofi Throluth2328 2007-07-10 03:27 |
| #2 Too bad this is just a token demonstration upon Musharraf's part. If he was serious, there'd be one-a-day of these cleanups. More than likely, this is paybacks for the people who tried to shoot down his plane and has nothing to do with truly dismantling the Taliban. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-07-10 01:31 |
| #1 Can the Red Turbans = Red-Star Turban movement survive iff 1000 supporters leave??? You know, 1000 +/- of minima 10,000 and more??? News at 11. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2007-07-10 00:47 |