ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government on Wednesday set a deadline of 11:30 am for the radical clerics and students of the hardline Lal Masjid here to surrender.

The deadline was for the 'mosque administration to surrender, hand over their weapons' to troops outside the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, Information Secretary Anwar Mehmood said.

"The men who surrender will be ensured safety," he said.

The government also allowed families of some students to go inside the mosque and talk to their wards.