Pakistani soldiers from the Special Services Group (SSG) prepare outside the Red Mosque before a strike against radical students, in Islamabad, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Pakistani troops stormed the pro-Taliban mosque in the heart of Islamabad where militants were holed up with many women and children, sparking gun battles that killed at least 5o militants and eight soldiers.
Pakistan's paramilitary troops move towards forward positions at Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Pakistani troops attempted to flush out holdouts entrenched inside a women's religious school after raiding the mosque in fierce fighting that left about 50 militants and eight soldiers dead, the army said.
A Pakistan army armored vehicle moves towards the forward positions at Lal or Red Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan on Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Troops stormed the compound of Islamabad's Red Mosque on Tuesday, prompting a fierce fire fight with militants accused of holding about 150 hostages inside, officials said.
Smoke rises from Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, during heavy gunbattle between Pakistani troops and militants, Tuesday, July 10, 2007 in Islamabad, Pakistan. Troops stormed the mosque compound on Tuesday, prompting a fierce fire fight with militants accused of holding about 150 hostages inside, officials said.
Pakistani paramilitary troops make way for ambulances rushing toward positions during a heavy gunbattle at Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, Tuesday, July 10, 2007 in Islamabad, Pakistan. Troops stormed the mosque compound on Tuesday, prompting a fierce fire fight with militants accused of holding about 150 hostages inside, officials said.
A Pakistani man whose relatives were inside the radical Red Mosque weeps as he talks on a cellular phone following a military assault on the mosque in Islamabad, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Pakistani troops launched a huge operation against militants holed up in the mosque after negotiations to free women and children failed, leaving 50 rebels and eight troops dead.
An unidentified injured man, who was inside Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) arrives at local hospital in Islamabad, Pakistan, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Troops stormed the mosque compound, prompting a fierce battle with militants accused of holding about 150 hostages inside, official said. At least 50 militants and eight soldiers died in the assault.
Two men, with family members inside the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, comfort one another as they hear the explosions and gunfire of Pakistani troops storming the mosque in Islamabad on Tuesday July 10, 2007.
Leaders of opposition from different religious parties headed by lawmaker Liaquat Baluch, third from left, stand near the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque to condemn the ongoing army operation against Islamic militants in Islamabad, Pakistan, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. Pakistani troops raided the mosque in fierce fighting that left about 50 militants and eight soldiers dead, the army said.
A Pakistani paramilitary soldier takes a position outside the radical Red Mosque in Islamabad, Tuesday, July 10, 2007. At least 50 militants and eight soldiers were killed in a Pakistan army assault on a radical mosque in the capital Islamabad, the military said.
Hundreds of Pakistani Islamic students burn tires as they hold bamboo sticks and shout anti-government slogans after an army raid on the Red Mosque in Islamabad, during a protest rally in Multan, Tuesday, July 10, 2007.
Pakistani paramilitary soldiers stand at the ready beside a barbed wire barricade near the Red Mosque in Islamabad, Tuesday, July 10, 2007, following a military assault. Around 50 suspected militants surrendered to government forces during a break in fighting at the mosque in the Pakistani capital, a military official said.
Ambulances cross through a military checkpoint as they leave the area of the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan on Tuesday, July 10, 2007.