Pakistan cracks down on militants

Pakistani authorities on Tuesday said they detained 44 suspected Islamic militants, including relatives of the insurgent leader involved in a deadly bombing in the Indian-controlled region of Kashmir last month. The Interior Ministry in a statement said it decided “to speed up action against all proscribed organizations.”

The detainees include Mufti Abdul Raoof and Hamad Azhar, both relatives of Masood Azhar, leader of the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed Islamic extremist group. That group claimed responsibility for a Feb. 14 bombing that killed 40 Indian paramilitary police officers in the disputed border region of Kashmir, igniting the worst clash in decades between India and Pakistan. Since then, Pakistan has been under international pressure to do more to combat Islamic militants in its country.