Pakistani police fire tear gas at protesting lawyers

Hundreds of police firing tear gas and swinging batons clashed with lawyers today while security forces across Pakistan blockaded courts to quash protests against President General Pervez Musharraf's declaration of a state of emergency.

In the biggest gathering, about 2,000 lawyers congregated at the High Court in the eastern city of Lahore.

As lawyers tried to exit on to a main road to stage a rally, in defiance of a police warnings not to violate a ban on demonstrations, hundreds of officers stormed inside.

Police swung batons and fired tear gas shells to disperse the lawyers, who responded by throwing stones and beating police with tree branches. The protesters shouted: "Go, Musharraf, go!"

Police bundled lawyers into waiting vans. At least two were bleeding from the head.

"The lawyers initiated trouble by throwing stones at police, and it forced us to take action against them," said city police chief Aftab Cheema.