July 13 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistan's army displayed an arsenal of weapons including rocket launchers and AK-47 rifles seized from militants at Islamabad's Red Mosque, which President Pervez Musharraf described as a ``fort ready for battle.''

Gas masks, suicide jackets and Pepsi bottles turned into gasoline bombs were also revealed to journalists touring the premises yesterday, after troops killed at least 75 militants in a two-day military operation that ended the standoff.

``You can see how prepared they were,'' army spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad told reporters.

The government has said the military assault was unavoidable as militants, including terrorists wanted in other countries, had taken control of the premises about 3 kilometers (2 miles) from the president's office. The raid, which also left 11 soldiers dead, may further strain Musharaff's relations with Islamic parties in the world's second-largest Muslim country.

``We suspect the presence of non-Pakistani militants,'' Arshad said. ``We will be able to establish their identity only after investigations.''

Troops met the fiercest resistance in the underground corridors and basements of the three-story seminary building adjacent to the mosque, he said. Two 30-foot (9-meter) high minarets, which house loudspeakers to call people to prayer, were used by militants as sniper positions, Arshad added.

Holy War

Soldiers found literature that called for Jihad, or holy war, against the West in the mosque, where walls were pitted with bullet holes after the July 10-11 offensive.

``We express our resolve that we won't let any mosque or seminary be misused for terrorism and extremism,'' Musharraf said in a televised speech to the nation late yesterday.

The standoff rattled the otherwise peaceful capital city of 1 million people, where most residents are government employees and their families.

The Red Mosque, also known as Lal Masjid, occupies a 3-acre (1.2-hectare) site in Islamabad and includes a religious school.

Maulana Muhammad Abdul Aziz was appointed by the government to succeed his father as chief cleric in 1998. He led protests against the government when Musharraf ended support for the Taliban regime in neighboring Afghanistan and backed the U.S.- led campaign against terrorism in 2001.

In January this year, female students of the Red Mosque took control of a government-owned children's library on the grounds and a month later kidnapped and then released three women from a nearby house, alleging they were running a brothel.

Islamic Law

Aziz established a religious court on the premises in April and demanded the government impose Islamic law in the capital. He threatened suicide attacks if police tried to shut the court or raid the premises and demanded the government close businesses selling videos and CDs and alleged brothels.

His students last month kidnapped seven Chinese nationals and accused them of running a massage parlor and brothel from a building the Chinese government said was a clinic. They were released a day later.

Troops encircled the mosque on July 4 and imposed a curfew on the city, after 24 people were killed in gun battles between students and security forces a day earlier. Aziz was arrested on the first day of the siege as he tried to escape dressed in a burqa, the head-to-toe veil worn by some Muslim women.

`Islamic Revolution'

His brother and deputy, Maulana Abdul Rashid Ghazi, was killed during the army raid. In a funeral oration for his brother yesterday, Aziz predicted the assault on the mosque will bring ``Islamic revolution'' to Pakistan, Associated Press said.

``Our struggle will continue,'' Aziz, who was guarded by more than 20 commandoes, said at the funeral in Punjab province, AP reported.

The standoff was a test for Musharraf, who faces the strongest opposition to his rule since he seized power in a military coup eight years ago.

He is also dealing with street protests that erupted after he suspended Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in March.

Opposition parties, who met in London July 8, demanded Musharraf resign and said their lawmakers will quit Parliament if he seeks a second term in office before general elections are held by January. The opposition, which controls one third of Parliament, also wants Musharraf to quit as army chief.

To contact the reporter on this story: Khalid Qayum in Islamabad, Pakistan, at kqayum@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 12, 2007 22:34 EDT