RAWALPINDI, April 3: Scores of supporters of Jamaat Ahle Sunnat Pakistan (JASP) began their long march here on Thursday in protest against the US-led invasion of Iraq.

The 4-day march started from Fawara Chowk and would terminate at Karachi on April 7. Dozens of Ahle Sunnat leaders led the march.

Before embarking on their march, the protesters gathered at the busiest intersection of Fawara Chowk. They were holding placards and banners inscribed with anti-war statements. They also raised slogans against US President George W Bush and pledged to support the people of Iraq.

The march leaders also assailed the United States and its allies in their speeches. Central Secretary General Allama Riaz Hussain Shah said the US had lost all senses in its design to dominate the whole world. The process, he added, was started from Afghanistan and now Iraq had been subjected to relentless bombardment.

“We have always raised our voice in support of Muslims wherever they have been brutalised. The killing of innocent Muslims including women, children and the elderly in Iraq has shocked the whole world and challenged the UN,” he said.