Mosque militants linked to assassination attempt
By Farhan Bokhariin Islamabad
Hardline Islamic militants linked to a 2004 assassination attempt on Shaukat Aziz, a leading Pakistani politician, are behind the seizure of a mosque at the centre of a week-long stand-off in Islamabad, the minister for religious affairs said yesterday.
Mr Aziz survived a suicide bomb attack while campaigning in 2004 and went on to win a seat in parliament and become the prime minister. At that time the country's intelligence officials said the assassination attempt was backed by al-Qaeda, which has vowed to target Pakistan's pro-US leaders.
Intelligence and security officials yesterday warned that the presence of hardliners linked to the attack on Mr Aziz made the chances of a negotiated settlement less likely.
In a Financial Times interview, Ijaz ul-Haq, religious affairs minister, said that up to five hardliners with a long history of involvement in militancy had seized control of the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, and its adjoining women's seminary, known as Jamia-e-Hifza. Abdul Rashid Ghazi, chief cleric of the mosque, was, said Mr Haq, "no more than a pawn who is being told not to accept any compromise".
Mr Haq claimed the body of a militant killed in crossfire near the mosque had been identified as one of the suspects in the attempt against Mr Aziz. The government has put the death toll in clashes since last Tuesday at 21 but clerics of the mosque claim more than 350 supporters have been killed.
Anger among security officials was running high yesterday after Lieutenant Colonel Haroon-ul-Islam of the military's elite special unit, known as the SSG, was killed in an overnight attempt to raid the complex. A second officer was injured.
On Saturday General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's military ruler, warned the militants to surrender.
"If they don't surrender, I'm saying it here, theywill be killed. We've shown great patience because we don't want people to be killed."
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