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Militants Attack 2 Air Bases in Western Pakistan | Militants Attack 2 Air Bases in Western Pakistan |
(about 2 hours later) | |
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistani security forces repulsed militant attacks on two military air bases in western Pakistan, setting off gun battles in which 10 militants were killed and several security officials were wounded, Pakistani officials said Friday. | |
The attacks Thursday night in Quetta, the capital of the restive province of Baluchistan, coincided with the start of a large street protest aimed at toppling Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, a demonstration that continued on Friday. | |
Clashes erupted on Friday afternoon between Mr. Sharif’s supporters and those of Imran Khan, the cricket star turned opposition politician who is leading the protest march, as the procession passed through Punjab Province on its way to Islamabad. | |
Rival supporters threw stones at one another in the town of Gujranwala, and Mr. Khan’s party claimed that his vehicle had been hit by gunshots, although the police and some reporters on the scene said there was no evidence of gunfire. | |
As the street clashes unfolded, the violence in Baluchistan offered fresh evidence of the country’s ongoing security threat. A faction of the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attacks. | |
“We have carried out the attacks to avenge the killing of innocent civilians during the ongoing military operation in North Waziristan,” Ehsanullah Ehsan, a spokesman for the faction, said by telephone, referring to a military operation in the tribal belt that started in June. | |
Earlier, a spokesman for an apparently different Taliban faction also claimed responsibility for the attack. | |
Mr. Ehsan claimed the Taliban had killed 35 security personnel and destroyed two airplanes. But a military spokesman said that the attackers had failed to penetrate the perimeter of the bases and that both were “fully functional and open” on Friday. | |
It was the third such attack on an air facility in Pakistan since May, when Islamist militants twice attacked the airport in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city. | |
Military officials said that militants, firing guns and throwing grenades, first attacked the Samungli air base on the edge of Quetta’s main civilian airport. They were met with heavy return fire from base guards and were unable to break through the external perimeter, the officials said. Three attackers were captured, they said. | |
An hour later, a second group of attackers struck the Khalid army aviation base, which is on the far side of Quetta. All of the attackers, described as suicide bombers, were killed in a gun battle that lasted several hours. Their bodies were in the custody of the security forces, according to a military spokesman. | |
The attacks took place during Pakistan’s annual Independence Day celebrations. Hours earlier, Mr. Sharif and the army chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, who is not related to the prime minister, visited Baluchistan Province to inaugurate a historic building that was burned by Baluch separatists last year. | |
In a statement on Friday, General Sharif said the attacks were a sign that “terrorists are on the run and making desperate attempts to cause damage to Pakistan.” | |
Mr. Sharif, meanwhile, faces an imminent political threat from the protest movement led by Mr. Khan, who accuses him of gaining power through election fraud. Once he reaches Islamabad, Mr. Khan has vowed to hold a sit-in until Mr. Sharif resigns and hold a fresh election. | |
He is joined by a second group of allied protesters, led by a firebrand preacher, Muhammad Tahir-ul Qadri, who is making similar demands. Both cavalcades were moving slowly along the colonial-era Grand Trunk Road, which connects major cities in the country’s north, in an attempt to attract more people on the way. They were expected to reach Islamabad by Friday evening. | |
The clashes along the route raised fears that more violence could engulf the previously peaceful protest. | |
The police resorted to baton charges to disperse angry supporters of Mr. Sharif and Mr. Khan. Local television news channels broadcast images of Sharif supporters throwing stones and shoes at Mr. Khan’s cavalcade. Several leaders of Mr. Khan’s party, who were standing atop a truck, were seen ducking for cover. | The police resorted to baton charges to disperse angry supporters of Mr. Sharif and Mr. Khan. Local television news channels broadcast images of Sharif supporters throwing stones and shoes at Mr. Khan’s cavalcade. Several leaders of Mr. Khan’s party, who were standing atop a truck, were seen ducking for cover. |
“If anything happens to me, there will be violence,” Mr. Khan warned. “We will post images of violence against us on Twitter.” | |
Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab Province and the younger brother of the prime minister, has urged their supporters to remain peaceful. | Shahbaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab Province and the younger brother of the prime minister, has urged their supporters to remain peaceful. |
The government says that only peaceful demonstrations will be allowed in the capital and that the protesters will not be allowed to reach Parliament or other major government buildings. | The government says that only peaceful demonstrations will be allowed in the capital and that the protesters will not be allowed to reach Parliament or other major government buildings. |