Day of Protest Doesn't Materialize
By AFZAL NADEEM
Associated Press Writer
KARACHI, Pakistan - Tight security in militant Islamic strongholds helped avert mass national protests Friday, though thousands of anti-U.S. demonstrators rampaged through this southern port city, throwing stones, lighting fires and unloading their weapons into the air.
Seven people, including a 3-year-old girl, were wounded by gunfire, authorities said. A KFC restaurant, a visible symbol of American consumerism in Karachi, was charred but not gutted when protesters set it alight.
Pakistan's militant Muslim strongholds have been tense since President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's decision to support U.S.-led efforts against terrorism _ which include apprehending Osama bin Laden and disabling the defenses of his hosts, Afghanistan's ruling Taliban.
Heavy security was in place in major extremist strongholds, including Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar. Crowds were generally modest in this nation of 145 million people.
In Karachi, a city of 14 million, some 5,000 participated _ and most of those who rioted for hours were Afghan refugees and ethnic Pashtuns who sympathize with them.
"Only a small minority is protesting," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Riaz Mohammed Khan.
Police fought back demonstrators in Karachi with batons, gunfire in the air and volleys of tear gas as mobs moved from place to place, burning cars and throwing stones and firing weapons.
A 3-year-old, identified by police as Zarina, was hit by a bullet during the chaos. She was being treated for wounds that police said were not life-threatening.
The KFC had covered its familiar sign and logo this week in anticipation of anti-American reaction, but protesters already knew of its existence. In the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore, police said they quickly deployed officers to the local KFC after learning of the attack.
In Peshawar, armored personnel carriers parked on corners and heavily armed soldiers lined the streets and hunkered down in sandbag bunkers. But when several thousand protesters demonstrated Friday afternoon, everything stayed peaceful.
Young men screaming "jihad is our way" were signing up to fight in Afghanistan in support of its rigidly Islamic Taliban rulers. Outside the Madni Mosque, as loudspeakers atop its minarets issued the call to prayer, young men handed money to a bearded man with a sign: "Give to jihad. Down with America and Long live Osama."
In Quetta, mullahs largely avoided anti-American sentiment Friday as at least 1,000 heavily armed riot police guarded the city, according to deputy police commander Hammayoon Jogezai. Much of the unrest this week was in or near Quetta, in Pakistan's southwest.
The government, trying to prevent violent mass protests while the world is watching Pakistan, detained three top Islamic party leaders this week and warned their followers that anyone who acted against the national interest would be dealt with harshly.
"There are some elements who do not agree with the government and they have right to hold peaceful demonstration. But no government in the world can tolerate violence," Khan said.
Leaders of major Muslim political parties vowed to continue the protests, issuing calls for a nationwide strike Monday.
Bin Laden is considered the top suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center and damaged the Pentagon.
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