Aasia Bibi plans to leave Pakistan, her family said Thursday as protesters mounted rallies for a second day against the verdict, blocking roads and burning tires. Bibi's acquittal immediately raised fears of violence and presented a challenge to the government of new Prime Minister Imran Khan partly by pursuing the Islamist agenda. Khan warned Islamist protesters on Wednesday night not to "test the patience of the state."
Bibi remained at an undisclosed location Thursday where the 54-year-old mother of five was being held for security reasons, awaiting her formal release, her brother, James Masih told The Associated Press. Masih said his sister simply would not be safe in Pakistan. "She has no other option and she will leave the country soon," he said. Masih would not disclose the country of her destination but both France and Spain have offered asylum.
Bibi's husband, Ashiq Masih, had returned from Britain with their children in mid-October and was waiting for her to join them, the brother added. Meanwhile, more than 1,000 protesters blocked a key road linking the capital, Islamabad with the garrison city of Rawalpindi on Thursday, demanding Bibi be publicly hanged. Authorities deployed paramilitary troops, signaling they could move in to clear the roads.
Hundreds also blocked another key motorway, linking Islamabad with major cities such as Lahore and Peshawar, chanting slogans against Bibi and demanding her execution. Hafiz Saeed urged followers to hold rallies across Pakistan on Friday to condemn Bibi's release.
Protesters, rallied by firebrand cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, also set up roadblocks and burned tires in Karachi while hundreds clashed Thursday with police in various parts of Punjab. Many parents kept their children from school, fearing more violence.
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