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| India-Pakistan |
| Militant fundraisers held in Punjab |
| 2010-06-24 |
| [Iran Press TV Latest] A Pakistani intelligence report hints at an increased presence of pro-Taliban militancy in the politically-important province of Punjab. They've only got four or five provinces. Which one's not important? A source in the Pakistani interior ministry told the BBC that the latest intelligence report names at least 17 banned militant groups, which are operating in the province under different names. The report says that they are raising funds through religious gatherings and meetings held in the name of social welfare. The disclosure comes days after Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik told a parliamentary committee that "Punjabi Taliban" were planning to destabilize the South Asian country. A few Pakistani officials have acknowledged the existence of militant bases in Punjab. The developments come after several heavily-armed gunmen attacked two separate prayer sites belonging to a minority sect in Lahore in early June. At least 100 people were killed in the fatal incident. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab claimed responsibility for the attacks. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Punjab group is a coalition of several militant organizations in the province, which was until recently considered a relatively secure part of the country. The Pakistani military has recently launched a series of operations in an effort to clear the troubled tribal zone of militants. Nearly 4,000 people have been killed in militant attacks throughout Pakistan since July 2007. |
| Posted by:Fred |