Pakistan: Senior Political Officials Arrested in Karachi
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Version 0 of 1. Two senior officials with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, the party that has dominated politics in Karachi for decades, were arrested Friday in the latest push by the Pakistani military to curb what it calls the party’s criminal activities, the authorities said. The Pakistan Rangers, the paramilitary force that provides law enforcement for the city, sealed off all roads leading to the party’s fortified headquarters a few hours after midnight, the authorities said. A spokesman for the Rangers said the party officials were charged with “arranging and facilitating hate speeches against the people of Karachi.” The raid and arrests were the latest blow to Altaf Hussain, the party’s embattled leader, who has controlled the fortunes of Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and its economic and commercial hub, for nearly a quarter-century while operating from self-imposed exile in London. |