In early morning raids, the Punjab police arrested 24 activists of Sipah-e-Sahaba, a militant Sunni Muslim group, in connection with the killing of five Shia Muslims a day earlier. The group is believed to be involved in scores of Shia murders.

The victims were all from Multan district, some 240 km south of the Punjab provincial capital of Lahore, and were killed in separate incidents.

The bullet-riddled bodies of three of them were found in an abandoned car 35 km east of Multan.

The other two men were found murdered near their homes.

The police raided homes and mosques in Multan, as well as neighbouring Khanewal and Bhawalpur, witnesses said.

Maulana Ahmed Lodhainvi, president of the Sipah-e-Sahaba's Punjab chapter, rejected police claims that his party was involved in the killings.

``Our party has noresponsibility for yesterday's murders,'' he said.

``It is the government's responsibility to provide protection to the lives of innocent people... but the government has miserably failed in this regard.''

Extremists Sunni and Shia Muslim parties are locked in a bloody conflict over the past several years in which hundreds of people have been killed across the country. The religious violence has intensified in recent months, especially in the Punjab province.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has ordered military courts to be set up all over the country for what he believes will ensure quick punishment of the culprits. However, his plan has been put on hold by the Supreme Court, which is hearing a petition challenging the validity of these courts.

Last year, the Punjab government headed by Shahbaz Sharif, Nawaz Sharif's younger brother, set up an elite police force to tackle terrorism in his province. The force, however, has not been able to do much in the face of serious infighting between the rivalreligious groups.

The Sunni Muslim parties want Pakistan to be declared a Sunni Muslim state. The Shias, who comprise about 10 percent of Pakistan's population, oppose this demand. Sunni groups blame Iran, a predominantly Shia country, for arming and financing the Shia radical groups in Pakistan. Shia Muslims on the other hand accuse Saudi Arabia of aiding the Sunni groups.

Both Iran and Saudi Arabia deny the charges.