Tributes paid to slain lawyers on 6th anniversary

Awami National Party (ANP) President Asfandyar Wali Khan on Monday called for strict action in light of the judicial inquiry report by Justice Qazi Faiz Isa in the terrorist incident in Quetta six years ago, in which more than 60 lawyers and other people were martyred and dozens were injured.

In a message on the sixth anniversary of the August 8 Quetta tragedy, the ANP chief also stressed the need for implementing the National Action Plan (NAP) against terrorism to prevent any such incident in the future.

“Further such incidents can be prevented by following the report of Justice Qazi Faiz Isa. Along with this report, the National Action Plan should also be implemented,” Khan said.

"Conspirators in the region still remain an obstacle to peace, the governments should take this matter seriously,” he added.

On 8 August in 2016, terrorists attacked a government hospital in Quetta with a suicide bombing and shooting, killing more than 70 people, and injuring more than 130 others.

At least 54 of those killed were lawyers, who had gathered at the hospital where the body of Advocate Bilal Anwar Kasi, then president of Balochistan Bar Association, was brought after he was shot dead by a gunman in the city.

Khan paid rich tributes to the martyred lawyers in the Quetta tragedy. “The martyred lawyers are our pride. Their sacrifice will not go in vain. We are the heirs of every martyr, who gave sacrifices in the war against terrorism,” he said.

“The terrorist attack in Quetta was a great tragedy in the history of Pakistan in which terrorists killed an entire generation of lawyers of Balochistan. Despite all these incidents and trauma, it is a matter of pride for lawyers that they stand up for the sanctity of the bench and bar,” he added.