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Hundreds of Pakistanis Rally on bin Laden Death Anniversary


Supporters of Pakistani religious party Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam hold an image of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden during an anti-American rally in Quetta, Pakistan, May 2, 2012.
Supporters of Pakistani religious party Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam hold an image of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden during an anti-American rally in Quetta, Pakistan, May 2, 2012.

Hundreds of Pakistanis took to the streets Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden's death.

U.S. special forces killed bin Laden during a covert raid in the garrison Pakistani town of Abbottabad on May 2, 2011.

In the southwestern city of Quetta, members of the pro-Taliban Jammat-e-Ulema Party condemned bin Laden's killing - shouting slogans in support of the al-Qaida leader and burning the American flag.

In Abbottabad, school children rallied at the site of bin Laden's compound, calling for peace and an end to U.S. drone strikes on Pakistani soil.

Pakistan's government has condemned the strikes and the bin Laden raid as a violation of the country's sovereignty.

Pakistan was on high alert Wednesday, with security agencies directed to watch out for possible attacks by militants seeking revenge for bin Laden's killing.

Last week, the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said it was restricting its employees from going to restaurants and markets in the Pakistani capital between April 27 though May 5, and recommended that American citizens in Islamabad take similar precautions. The embassy did not give a reason for the security warning, but the dates coincide with the first anniversary of the al-Qaida leader's death.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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