Protests Demand Ending Bomb Attacks Against Muslim Shiites: Pakistan

Local Editor

Pakistan's Shiite Muslim protesters have put an end to their nearly four-day protest in Balochistan Province, preparing for the burial of the victims of recent bomb attacks in the region.

Tens of thousands of Shiites participated in the sit-in being staged to press the federal government to dismiss Balochistan government and army control over Balochistan province. Protest rallies and demonstrations were held in Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta and other small and big cities.
Sadat Ali Khan, a Shiite leader said the protest in the city of Quetta had been called off and the burial will start after prayers in the afternoon.

"We always condemned terrorism all in its forms. We exposed the terrorists but government turned a deaf ear to our hue and cry and now you see security agencies too fall victims to the same terrorists," said Maulana Sadiq Raza Taqvi, Karachi secretary general of Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM-Council of Muslims' Unity).
Speaking to the protestors, he said, a local takfiri group who declare Muslims as non-Muslims because of sectarian differences was involved in the massacre of innocent Muslims including Shiites and the takfiri group publicly claims responsibility for the massacre of innocent people. He said that unfortunately, government and security agencies took no action against the terrorists.
Moreover, Ghinwa Bhutto, Chairperson, spoke at the sit-in saying "The United States and "Israel" are playing dirty game in Pakistan and the region and they and their hired terrorists were massacring people in Pakistan, Syria and other countries."

The decision came after Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf visited the families of the victims and dismissed the provincial government of southwestern Balochistan to respond to the Shiite Muslims' demands.
On January 10, nearly 130 people were killed and many others injured in a wave of deadly attacks targeting both Pakistani security guards and civilians, including Shia Muslims.

More than 90 of the victims lost their lives in twin bomb attacks that targeted Shia Muslims in a crowded place in Quetta. The outlawed terrorist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the attack.
Prior to the prime minister's visit, the families of the victims in Quetta had refused to bury the bodies of the victims, calling on Islamabad to dispatch security forces to the province to implement law and order.

Massive protests were held across the country to denounce the violence against Shiites, with protesters accusing the Pakistani government of failing to take enough action to prevent terror attacks on Shiites.

Source: News agencies, edited by moqawama.org