Security forces clash with Islamic students in Pakistan

Security forces clash with Islamic students in Pakistan

Security forces clashed with Islamic students outside a radical mosque in the Pakistani capital, triggering gunfire that killed nine people.

The students later pelted two government buildings, including the Ministry of Environment, with rocks and set them ablaze, and torched a dozen cars in the ministry's lot.

The battle marked a major escalation in a six-month standoff at the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, whose clerics have challenged the military-led government by mounting a vigilante anti-vice campaign in Islamabad.