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July 28, 2007

Investigation Begins in Fatal Bombing Near Pakistan's Red Mosque
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=184A02D:A6F02AD83191E160DE88ACA4F32B1D569574F7DCC14957C0 Suicide bomb attack
killed at least 13 people, wounded more than 50 others Friday





Suicide bomb attack killed at least 13 people, wounded more than 50
othersPakistani authorities are investigating a suicide bomb attack
near Islamabad's radical Red Mosque that killed at least 13 people and
wounded more than 50 others.

The blast occurred Friday at a restaurant near the complex, shortly
after hundreds of Islamic students clashed with security forces. The
students threw stones at police, who responded with tear gas.

Most of the victims of the suicide attack were policemen.

Hundreds of people re-occupied the mosque Friday morning. They chased
away a cleric chosen by the government to lead afternoon prayers, and
demanded the return of the pro-Taleban mosque's former cleric, Abdul
Aziz, who is in police custody.

The interior minister, Aftab Sherpao, said the government will not
allow demonstrators to take the law into their own hands.

The government reopened the mosque Thursday, two weeks after a deadly
raid on the compound.

More than 100 people, including a top radical cleric, Abdul Rashid
Ghazi, died during an eight-day siege of the mosque compound.

Radical clerics led the school's students in an aggressive campaign to
impose strict Islamic law in Pakistan.

Also Friday, Pakistani media reported that President Pervez Musharraf,
who is currently visiting the United Arab Emirates, was to secretly
meet with exiled former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. The reports say
the two might form a power-sharing pact. However, both sides denied
the reports as baseless.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.