Two terror-linked madarassas re-opened in bid to get Zardari radical Islamic votes
2 Sep 2008, 1215 Hrs

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Islamabad, Sept 2 (ANI): In a surprising move, barely a few hours after the Jamiat Ulema Islam (JUI), a pro-Taleban group, pledged its support for PPP's presidential candidate Asif Ali Zardari, two radical madrassas that were closed over their links to terrorism, were allowed to resume activities by the Pakistani Government.

The move was an attempt to get an Islamic group to support Zardari in this week's presidential election, reported timesonline.com.

According to the report, permission was granted for the reconstruction of the Hafza madrassa, a seminary attached to the Red Mosque, which was demolished last year during a military raid that killed more than 100 people.

Besides, the police had been removed from the Fareedia madrassa, a seminary also linked to the mosque, and the management said the madrassa would start teaching again soon.

Meanwhile, a ceasefire has been declared in the Bajur tribal region on the border with Afghanistan for the holy month of Ramadan. In the past three weeks Pakistani troops have killed more than 400 militants in Bajur, which is believed to be the main base for al-Qaeda and Taleban militants fighting in Afghanistan. (ANI)