Protests against anti-Islam film leave one dead, two injured in KP

Zahir Shah Sherazi Published September 17, 2012

Elite force personnel were deployed in front of the US consulate as protesters tried to march on the US consulate during a rally against the blasphemous film. — Photo by Zahir Shah

PESHAWAR: One person was killed and two others were injured, on Monday, as a result of police gunfire during protests against the anti-Islam film “Innocence of Muslims” in the Upper Dir district of Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (KPK) province.

Rallies against the sacrilegious film were held across the northwestern province, leading to violent protests and gunfire from the police who were trying control the mobs.

Police fired on the mob in the Wari area of Upper Dir district when protestors torched the Wari Press Club building and offices of local magistrate besides other government buildings.

One person was killed and two others were injured in the firing, which turned the protestors furious and they pelted stones at the police and set ablaze other buildings as well.

The lawyers’ community of the KPK observed a ‘black day ‘and boycotted court proceedings on the call of Khyber Paktunkhawa Bar Council and businesses remained suspended for the day in the high court and other courts across KPK.

Protests in Peshawar also turned violent as rallies were taken out separately in parts of the city converged towards the US consulate, which had prompted the administration to beef up the cordon by deploying extra personnel, stopping the mob from getting close to the consulate on Khyber Road.

Rallies taken out by the student wings of the Jamaat-i-Islami and the Awami National Party marched towards the consulate but were stopped by law enforcement agencies.

Meanwhile, the Difa-i-Pakistan Council (DPC) announced its plans for a long march on October 1 for Tahaffuz-i-Namoos-i-Rislaat (Council for Protection of the Finality of the Prophet (PBUH)).

Speaking at a meeting of DPC at Markaz-i-Islami in Peshawar, the provincial president of JUI-S and the DPC leader Mualana Yousaf Shah said that the council will start a Long March from Peshawar to Jamrud for the Tahaffuz-i-Namoos-i-Rislaat and condemn the derogatory film on the life of Prophet (PBUH).

Shah said that the DPC would also hold a big protest rally in Bannu on September 25 to condemn the drone attacks and would march towards the North Waziristan Agency to express their solidarity with the innocent tribesmen being targeted by the US drones.