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40 arrests as Pakistani police held hostage

PAKISTAN: Pakistani authorities have detained about 40 Islamist students amid a tense stand-off over two policemen held hostage at an extremist mosque in the capital Islamabad, officials said.

The men were arrested as they tried to go to the Red Mosque, where hardline students are locked in a three-day confrontation with armed security forces, government spokesman Brigadier Javed Cheema said.

“The 40 or so arrests that have been made were of potential troublemakers,” Cheema told AFP. “Security has been beefed up at entry and exit points of the capital to make sure that unwanted people do not enter.”

Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao said the government was seeking a quick resolution to the crisis.

“We will apply all pressures to secure the release of the two policemen,” he told private TV on Monday evening. “We are in contact with the administration of the Red Mosque. We have avoided any operation because of the presence of a large number of women there.” “We don’t want bloodshed,” he added.

Islamabad police chief Iftikhar Ahmed Chaudhry refused to rule out a raid on the mosque.

“All options are open and these options are being considered,” he said.

Students at a religious school attached to the mosque seized the four policemen on Friday.

Two were freed the next day after a deal was struck with authorities to release four extremists, although the four have not yet been handed over.

Islamabad, Tuesday, AFP.

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