Malik Ishaq, a founder of the banned Sunni hard boy group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi
... a 'more violent' offshoot of Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistain. LeJ's purpose in life is to murder anyone who's not of utmost religious purity, starting with Shiites but including Brelvis, Ahmadis, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Rosicrucians, and just about anyone else you can think of. They are currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of al-Qaeda ...
, was accused in dozens of killings, including many of minority Shias, but was released on bail in July after 14 years in prison because the Supreme Court decided there was not enough evidence to keep holding him.
He has been giving public speeches since his release whipping up anger toward Shias, who make up about 15 percent of the population, said a police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity
... for fear of being murdered...
because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
The
Punjab provincial government on Wednesday ordered that Ishaq remain at home for 10 days, said Sohail Chatta, the police chief in Rahim Yar Khan district where Ishaq lives.Ishaq's behavior endangered "sectarian harmony and caused a sudden rise in sectarian temperature in the country," said Chatta.
Most Sunnis and Shias live together peacefully in Pakistain, but the country also has a long history of hard boyz on both sides carrying out attacks against the opposite sect. In recent years, many of these attacks have involved Sunnis targeting Shias.
Suspected Sunni hard boyz opened fire on Shia pilgrims traveling by bus through southwest Pakistain on Tuesday on their way to Iran, killing 26 people, officials and survivors said.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi grabbed credit in a telephone call to a local journalist in Quetta, but that claim could not be verified.
| I vote anyone who takes credit for a crime of terror be treated as if he had, with the full weight of punishment. If that doesn't divert actual culprits, it will at least reduce the active population of those who think such behaviour cool and romantic. Do they hang people in Pakistan, still? |
Ishaq was locked away in 1997, and has been accused of a slew of crimes. In 2009, he was blamed for orchestrating an attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team in the eastern Pak city of Lahore. Six security officers and a driver died in that assault.
His release underscored the difficulty Pak prosecutors have had convicting suspects in a justice system that lacks resources, is plagued by corruption and is rife with tales of witness intimidation.