In Dawn's blog section I happened upon this incredibly insightful and reflective short essay about the ethnic and class basis of many of Pakistan's ills. At first I thought it would not be applicable enough to this news to post it on this thread. Then I thought again: maybe it is related, maybe very much so.

Highly recommended:

At the crossroads of tragic possibilities, by Mobarak Haider,| 9 hours ago

The author is a renowned Pakistani intellectual. His urdu books Tehzeebi Nargisyat and Mubaalghe, Mughaalte are widely regarded as the revival of critical thinking and free inquiry in Urdu non-fiction.

Pakistan warns anti-government cleric to end protest
By Mubasher Bukhari, Reuters – 9 hrs ago

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's interior minister on Wednesday warned an anti-government Muslim cleric and thousands of protesters camped out near parliament to disperse, saying they were at risk of attack by militants.

Rehman Malik said authorities had learned militants might be planning to target the crowd, and that the cleric, Muhammad Tahirul Qadri, would be held responsible for any attacks.

"The best commandos are with me today," Malik told a news conference, saying security forces could take action against Qadri within the next two days to prevent "expected terrorism".

"I hope that he listens to me."

Qadri, who backed a military coup in 1999, is calling for the immediate resignation of the government and the installation of a caretaker administration to oversee electoral reforms [...]

Pakistan protests move to Peshawar    
Thousands take to the streets to protest the deaths of dozens of people reportedly killed in overnight raids.
Al Jazeera, 16 Jan. 2013

Thousands have taken to the streets of northwest Pakistan to protest the deaths of 18 people they say were killed in overnight raids.

The bodies of the victims, from the Bara tribal area, were placed outside the governor's house in Peshawar by the 3,000 people gathered outside. The tribemen say the dead were killed in a raid by Pakistani security forces in the Khyber agency.

Shabir Ahmed, a soldier from the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary, said his four brothers and father were present at their home when uniformed gunmen stormed his house, opened fire and killed them.

"I want to know who killed my brothers and father and why," he said.

Demonstrators said gunmen wearing military uniforms stormed homes in their area and shot the villagers dead. [...]