Showdown at Pakistan’s Red Mosque

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has intervened to defuse the explosive standoff at Islamabad’s Red Mosque, which has resulted in at least 19 deaths over the last three days.  The BBC reports that the mosque’s religious leader, Maulana Abdul Aziz, was captured Wednesday after he tried to leave the scene shrouded in a burka.

BBC:

There have been two large explosions in the buildings of a rebellious mosque in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, which is being besieged by security forces.

Separately, troops have breached the compound wall and are waiting for orders to proceed, officials say.

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AP Photo / Anjum Naveed

Pakistani paramilitary troops arrive Thursday at Islamabad’s Red Mosque.