Taliban Fear Burns Lahore Porn CDs

This was not a short-circuit fire or the action of an angry mob. The CDs, mostly porn, were being set ablaze by shopkeepers themselves.

"We had received letters from unidentified persons, presumably Taliban or their local supporters, who warned us to immediately close down this business," Taseer Ahmed, a local shopkeeper who has been selling such CDs at Hall market for the last ten years, told IslamOnline.net.

"You all are informed to close down this abhorrent business immediately otherwise you will solely be responsible for the further consequences, including blowing up your shops," read one of the letters.

Under threat of attack, many traders voluntarily torched all their stock of CDs to send a message of compliance to the suspected Taliban.

"Of course, the letters had frightened us. You cannot simply rule out the possibility of bombings here, especially when no part of the country is safe," Taseer said.

Suspected militants have blown up numerous music and CD shops in different parts of the Northwestern Frontier Province (NWFP), which borders Afghanistan, in the last two years.

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