Thousands in Pakistan protest over US bounty

The Defence Council of Pakistan, an alliance of right-wing, religious and extremist groups, organised the rallies to denounce the US move against Hafiz Saeed, who established the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

The day's largest demonstration came in the eastern city of Lahore, a stronghold of Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the charity seen as a front for LeT.

Up to 2,000 rallied in the city, shouting "America deserves one treatment: Jihad! Jihad! (holy war)."

Protests were also staged in Islamabad, the neighbouring garrison city of Rawalpindi, the southern port city of Karachi, the central shrine city of Multan and in Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistani-administered Kashmir.

Speakers urged President Asif Ali Zardari to cancel a visit to India on Sunday and demanded an American apology for the bounty.

"Our protests will continue until the US withdraws its bounty of $10 million against Hafiz Saeed," Defence Council of Pakistan organiser Hafiz Abdul Ghaffar told AFP.