Pakistan Army HQ Sabotaged
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By MUNIR AHMAD Associated Press Writer
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Fire tore through Pakistan's army headquarters
early Wednesday, burning buildings, furniture and paper for more than
five hours before it was brought under control, authorities said. The
president's spokesman attributed it to ''short-circuiting.''
The fire broke out shortly after 4 a.m. at the Pakistani army's
General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, just outside the capital
Islamabad, said Maj. Gen. Rashid Quereshi, chief spokesman of
Pakistan's army and its leader, President Gen. Pervez Musharraf.
No injuries were reported, and the extent of the damage was not
immediately clear, according to Islamabad fire chief Mohammed Yaqoob.
He said the fire was brought under control shortly after 9:30 a.m.
''The entire structure of the GHQ has been gutted. Furniture has been
reduced to ashes. Dozens of offices have been burned completely,''
said firefighter Abdul Qayum.
Quereshi said an investigation was underway, but the fire began ''as a
result of short-circuiting.'' He said it started in a stationery store
within the headquarters complex and spread through the wooden
structure into other buildings.
Hundreds of army officers are based in the headquarters.
The fire came two days after Musharraf reshuffled his army leadership
in an apparent attempt to strengthen his power base after deciding to
support the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism in neighboring
Afghanistan.