Riaz Basra

Riaz Basra (1967 - 14 May, 2002) was a Pakistani militant involved in sectarian fighting with Shia elements in Pakistan. Basra founded the militant organization Lashkar-e-Jhangvi in 1996.

Riaz Basra was born in Chak Chah Thandiwala, Sargodha, in 1967. He studied at madrassas in Lahore and Sargodha before joining the militant group Sipah-e-Sahaba in 1985. Basra allegedly served in the Afghan War on the mujahideen side, receiving a bullet wound in the leg. [Shamsul Islam Naz [http://www.dawn.com/2002/05/17/fea.htm Basra encounter: a poorly staged drama] "Dawn (Pakistan)", May 17, 2002]

In 1996, Basra broke from Sipah-e-Sahaba to form his own anti-Shia organization Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. The organization takes its name from the deceased founder of Sipah-e-Sahaba, Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, who was killed in a retaliatory bomb attack by Shia militants on 23 February, 1990. [ [http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/countries/pakistan/terroristoutfits/Ssp.htm Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, Terrorist Group of Pakistan] South Asian Terrorism Portal.]

Basra was himself killed in a shootout in a Shia village in Vehari district, Punjab. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1987468.stm Police kill Pakistan's most wanted man] BBC News, 14 May 2002] Basra and three other Lashkar-e-Jhangvi members had come to stage an attack on a prominent Shia, but were met with armed resistance by local villagers. A special police brigade arrived to support a half-hour later, ending the fight, during which all four Lashkar-e-Jhangvi members were killed. [Howard D. French [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D00EED81738F93AA25756C0A9649C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all For Militant, No Glorified End, but Death in the Dust] "New York Times", May 19 2002]

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