Pakistani forces stormed a mosque compound in the capital of Islamabad on Tuesday, killing at least 40 militants as they fought their way through an Islamic school where women and children were feared to be hiding.

While militants mounted a last stand in the basements of the madrasa, commandos had yet to encounter any women and children, with more than two-thirds of the complex cleared.

Th

	Advertisement

Three soldiers were killed and many more people wounded, according to military spokesman Major-General Waheed Arshad, while 50 militants were arrested.

But he said these were initial casualty reports and the assault to end a week long standoff at Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque was still in progress more than six hours after it began.

Women and children were feared to be in areas of the compound security forces had yet to clear, he said. "They have yet to be encountered," he said.

Nearly 30 loud blasts rocked the heart of Islamabad for an hour beginning at around 9.30 A.M. There was no sound of gunfire. "It is now the final push," said a security official, who added that troops had failed to find anyone in one basement and were moving on to others.

There are fears the militants may resort to suicide bombs. Officials said on Monday that suicide vests had been distributed among the defenders.

Heavy loss of life among women and children could have serious repercussions for President Pervez Musharraf, who had been under pressure to confront the militants for some time.

Speaking about five hours after the assault started, Arshad said the mosque itself had cleared of militants, but resistance remained in parts of the compound. Gunfire and explosions still boomed over the city.

"Those who surrender will be arrested, but the others will be treated as combatants and killed," he said. Arshad that about 40 militants had been killed. Three special forces commandos were also killed and 15 wounded, he said.

The troops moved in a week after the outbreak of fighting between security forces and supporters of hardline clerics at the mosque, who had tried to impose Taliban-style rule in the capital through a six-month campaign of kidnappings and threats. At least 87 people have been killed since July 3.

The vigilante anti-vice campaign, led by hardline clerics with alleged links to outlawed militant groups, has proved an embarrassment to President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, a key U.S.-ally in its war on terror, and underlined his administration's failure to control extremist religious schools.

The assault on compound, centered on one of Islamabad's most prominent mosques, began moments after a delegation led by a former prime minister left the area declaring that efforts to negotiate a peaceful end to the week-old siege in the Pakistani capital had failed.

As they entered their vehicles, several explosions rang out across the city amid the sound of gunfire. Thick smoke rose from the mosque compound. Reporters saw more than 40 ambulances approaching the area along with trucks carrying extra soldiers and ammunition. A helicopter circled overhead.

Rehmatullah Khalil, a senior cleric who was part of a 12-member government-appointed delegation of mediators, accused Musharraf of sabotaging a draft agreement that had been prepared following talks with rebel leader Abdul Rashid Ghazi.

He said ex-premier Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain had prepared an agreement under which Ghazi was to be briefly held in protective custody, and the government would agree to free the students. Only those being sought by police were to be detained.

"We were happy and hoping that the nation will hear a good news, but the government changed almost all clauses of the draft agreement," he told The Associated Press. "We were stunned on seeing changes in the draft agreement, and we don't know why the government did so.

"The government is responsible for today's bloodshed."

He said the Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz had given his consent to the draft agreement, but it was changed at the president's office.

Officials were not immediately available to comment on the claim. Although earlier, Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azim said Ghazi had wanted everyone inside the compound to be freed.

"Ghazi wanted everyone free but there are some wanted people inside. We can't give any blanket relaxation," Azim said.

When Hussain and a delegation of Islamic clerics returned crestfallen from the mosque after about nine hours of talks with Ghazi via loudspeakers and cell phones, Hussain told reporters: "We offered him a lot, but he wasn't ready to come on our terms."

Ghazi told the private Geo TV network that his mother had been wounded by gunshot in the assault. There was no immediate official confirmation of his claim, although Arshad said none of the slain militants were women.

"The government is using full force. This is naked aggression," Ghazi told Geo soon after the assault began. "My martyrdom is certain now." He said that about 30 militants were resisting security forces but were only armed with 14 AK-47 assault rifles.

Arshad said he had no information on whether Ghazi had been injured or killed. As the fighting roiled on, emergency workers at an army cordon waited for access to the compound. Women police officers were on standby to handle any female survivors or casualties.