Karachi tsunami relief camp attack
LAHORE, Pakistan (CNN) -- Nearly three dozen people roared up on motorcycles to the main building of Karachi's largest news group Saturday, overpowering the security staff and ransacking the reception area, offices and a relief camp set up to collect goods for tsunami victims.
The Jang group -- which includes more than 20 publications, including the largest Urdu and English circulation newspapers and the local Urdu TV channel GEO -- believes the attack was a reaction to the publication of a TV interview with Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres in the Daily Jang and The News.
The official told CNN that about 30 to 35 people on 18 to 20 motorcycles opened fire and beat the security staff. They ransacked the reception area and smashed the glass doors of the main entrance.
Next, the attackers, armed and carrying bags of stones, moved on to the GEO TV offices, where they broke the glass main doors and damaged the reporting section. The attackers broke open the locked doors of the cash counter and took cash and valuables. They also set fire to a cabinet.
Turning to the parking lot of the Daily Jang building, the attackers damaged Daily Jang and GEO TV seven vehicles as well as personal cars of staff members.
The attackers also uprooted a relief camp set up along the building by the Mir Khalil-ur-Rahman Foundation to collect relief goods for the tsunami victims, throwing the collected relief goods across the road.
Police arrived while the incident was ongoing, and the attackers fled in the presence of police, giving threat of serious consequences and using abusive language.
