Pakistan radicals release Chinese 'brothel' workers

[A.Rahman]

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Pakistan radicals release Chinese 'brothel' workers

Students from a radical mosque have released nine hostages who had earlier been taken from an alleged brothel in the Pakistani capital, a mosque leader said.

Abdul Rashid Ghazi, a top cleric at Islamabad's Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, said the nine had been let go in the interests of friendship between Pakistan and China and after authorities had given assurances about stopping mixed-sex massage parlours.

The abductions were the most provocative action by the Taliban-supporting students associated with the Red Mosque in their self-styled anti-vice campaign.

China is Pakistan's most steadfast ally. The Pakistani Government has called the kidnappings, from what it said was a health clinic, "shocking".

Mr Ghazi says seven of the nine, who were held at a religious school next to the Lal Masjid, were Chinese and two Pakistanis. Six of the Chinese were women, he said.

"We greatly respect Pakistan-China friendship but it doesn't mean that foreign women can come here and indulge in such vulgar activities," he said before their release.

"We had complaints that these women did massage for men but it was more than that."

China's Xinhua news agency said Pakistan Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao had telephoned China's ambassador to apologise and assure him the hostages would be speedily released.

Authorities have been confronting the clerics and students at the mosque for months. The radicals have threatened suicide bombings if force was used against them.

Trouble began in January when female students attached to the mosque occupied a library next to their school to protest against a campaign to remove mosques built illegally on state land.

[Adux]

Pakistani paramilitary soldiers erect barbed wires as they build camps to secure the area near the radical Red Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan, 27 June 2007. China has asked Pakistan to take more measures for the safeguard Chinese people and businesses in the country after workers at a Chinese massage centre in Islamabad were abducted by religious students of Red Mosque and its adjacent women seminary Jamia Hafsa, who were released after about 17 hours. Students of Jamia Hafsa and its adjacent Lal Mosque, both the men's and women's wings of an emerging brand of the Pakistani Taliban, have started to impose new rules of morality in a 'vice and virtue' campaign in the capital Islamabad. EPA/T. MUGHAL

[Bull]

Since the issue is solved why is the police building a c amp around/near it. Have they realised now this is going to be a hotspot from here on and hence needs much closer monitoring.

[Adux]

Bull,

Musharaf loosing support, he got a whacko in islamabad and he cant do anything about them

[kidwaibhai]

musharraf cant do anything about this mosque because they are using wemon as sheilds, so if the government moves in then it would be a blood bath and wemon will get hurt which will make the government look bad. But i do think that GoP has to do something this is getting out of controll.
As for the massage parlour i have heard stories and know someone that got more than a massage there

[Lahori paa jee]

This issue was created by ISI. The Lal masjid episode has been there since august/sept 2006 but the government did nothing. It only gained prominence on 8 or 9th march, exactly at the same time when CJ's issue came up. Every time CJ has to visit some place the lal masjid squad kidnap people. The abduction of chinese was done just a day before CJ was to visit multan.

But i want this to end as early as possible. But the sad aspect is the two idiot brothers will be arrested unharmed and the only loss will be of the students of lal masjid.

[Skull-Buster]

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^^^ absolutely true. Lal Masjid is a drama created by ISI. or else they wouldnt have survived this long.