From Rezaul H Laskar
Islamabad, May 22 (PTI) Hardline Deobandi and Ahl-i-Hadith clerics in Pakistan's Punjab province have been receiving financial aid worth nearly USD 100 million annually from groups in Saudi Arabia and UAE, according to a secret US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks.
The cable sent in November 2008 to the US State Department by Bryan Hunt, then Principal Officer at the US Consulate in Lahore, was based on information gathered during discussions with local government and non-governmental sources during trips to Multan and Bahawalpur cities in Punjab.
Most of the funding flowed to southern Punjab, which has been described by Western diplomats and security officials as an emerging stronghold of jihadists, including the Punjabi Taliban.