PESHAWAR, Oct 7: The house-arrest of JUI(F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman sparked unrest among his followers resulting in protest demonstration here on Sunday.

Hundreds of charged workers of JUI(F) assembled at Madni Mosque at Namakmandhi and were addressed by various leaders of the party. The meeting was followed by a procession which remained peaceful and terminated at Shoba Chowk.

Some of the speakers hinted that the anticipated US attack was round the corner, warning that in retaliation they would destroy all the churches and temples here.

The protesters warned the government of dire consequences if Maulana Fazlur Rehman had not been released at the earliest. They also stated that if the government banned their demonstrations on roads they would go underground and launch massive attack against US interests.

The demonstration was addressed by Maulana Attaur Rehman, brother of Maulana Fazl, Abu Hassan, Ahsanul Haq, Hussain Ahmad Madni and others. The speakers said that the government was scared with the growing popularity of Maulana Fazl due to which he was put under house arrest.

They said that as he was spearheading the movement against US and government, therefore, the government considered it appropriate to arrest him. Moreover, they added, they were proud of instigating the public against the US as across the world the US had been trying to subjugate Muslims and it was the responsibility of each and every Muslim to make other people aware about nefarious designs of the US.

The speakers said that if the government allowed the US to use its territory against Afghanistan it would be the last day of general Musharraf in power. They said that the US President, George W. Bush had already made it clear that it was a war against the Muslims and now it was the responsibility of every true Muslim to come forward in aid of their Afghan brothers.

The protest meeting was followed by a procession. The protesters were chanting slogans against the US and Pakistani governments. A huge contingent of police was deployed to avert any untoward incident. However, the demonstration remained peaceful.