A 26 September 1997 India Abroad report, mentions Riaz Basra as "the alleged ring leader" of the anti-Shia militant group called Lashkar-i-Jhangvi. An 18 September 1997 Agence France Presse (AFP) report states that Riaz Basra is the group's founder. According to a 21 February 1997 AFP report, Mohammed Riaz, whose nickname is Riaz Basra, was previously expelled from the Sunni militant group Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) for his extremist policies.

A 19 September 1997 report from the Islamabad newspaper The News states that Riaz Basrah, the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi leader, had claimed responsibility for the 17 September 1997 murder of five Iranians in Rawalpindi.

According to the 21 February 1997 AFP report, Riaz Basrah claimed responsibility on behalf of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi for the murder of another Iranian diplomat and seven other Iranians in the February 1997 attack on the Iranian cultural centre in Multan.

A 19 August 1996 United Press International (UPI) report states that Riaz Basra claimed responsibility on behalf of the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi for the 18 August 1996 revenge attack on a Shiite mosque during which 15 people were slain and 50 wounded. The report also mentions that Riaz Basra, an army deserter, was arrested by police in 1993 in connection with the 1992 murder of Iranian diplomat Sadiqe Ganjawi in Lahore. However, a Sipah-i-Sahaba gang rescued him from prison the same year.

According to a 5 October 1997 article from The Frontier Post of Peshawar, Riaz Basra was still being sought by the authorities in Pakistan.

For information on the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi organization, please consult Responses to Information Requests PAK27527.E of 27 August 1997, PAK27416.E fo 25 July 1997 and PAK26607.E of 26 February 1997.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Agence France Presse (AFP)[Hong Kong, in English]. 18 September 1997. "Pakistan: Underground Sunni Group Claims Murder of Iranian Cadets." (FBIS-TOT-97-261 19 Sept. 1997/WNC)

_____ 21 February 1997. "Underground Militant Group Claims Murder of Iranian Diplomat." (NEXIS)

The Frontier Post [Peshawar, in English]. 5 October 1997. "Pakistan: Sunni Militant Leader Confesses to 102 Killings."(FBIS-TOT-97-280 10 August 1997/WCN)

India Abroad [Toronto]. 26 September 1997. "Diplomatic Row Brews Over Killings of Iranians."

The News [Islamabad, in English]. 19 September 1997. Pakistan: Group Claims Responsibility for Deaths of Five Iranians." (FBIS-TOT-97-262 22 Sept. 1997/WNC)

United Press International (UPI). 19 August 1996. Anwar Iqbal. "More Clashes Feared in Pakistan." (NEXIS)