Sectarian violence
September 21, 2011
On Tuesday, in a brutal assault, gunmen ordered Shiite pilgrims out of their bus, lined them up and assassinated 26 in a hail of gunfire in Mastung, a district 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province.
Then gunmen killed another three Shiites on the outskirts of Quetta whom police said were going to collect the bodies of the relatives killed in the first incident. Both attacks occurred on Tuesday.
Pakistan's Shiite community has declared three days of mourning. More than 3,500 faithful gathered in Quetta on Wednesday for a mass funeral, chanting slogans against the government and demanding more protection. Hundreds of women and children armed with placards and banners staged a protest after funeral prayers in the southwestern city.
The police also added that markets were closed in the city's Shiite-dominated neighbourhoods and dozens of protestors had blocked a main road by setting fire to tyres.
Some 85 people were taken into custody during a search operation to find the attackers. A police spokesman added that,"These people have been taken into custody for questioning. Those proven innocent will be released later."
'The government should do more'
Pakistan's independent rights watchdog said the killers had been emboldened by a persistent lack of action against sectarian militant groups, which have been implicated in thousands of deaths in past years.
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan warned that Tuesday's attack "exposes once again the diminishing writ of the state." The HRCP demanded that the government move beyond rhetoric and its current casual and reactive approach to law and order challenges and start functioning as a responsible authority.
Tuesday's attack was the deadliest attack on Shiites in Pakistan since September 4, 2010 when a suicide bomber killed at least 57 people at a rally in Quetta. Baluchistan has become an increasing flashpoint for sectarian violence between Pakistan's majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shiites, who account for around a fifth of the country's 167 million population.
Author: Marina Joarder (AFP)
Editor: Grahame Lucas