'State responsible for curbing terrorism'

CII chief says nation stands with armed forces

LAHORE:

The chairman of the country's Islamic advisory body has said it is the responsibility of the State of Pakistan to take action against terrorists and their facilitators.

"Terrorists are open enemies of humanity," Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) Chairman Dr Raghib Naeemi said on Sunday while addressing a congregation of religious scholars in Lahore. The CII chief condemned Saturday's suicide attack in Quetta which claimed 27 lives while injuring dozens. He said the killers of innocent Pakistanis at Quetta Railway Station are cruel terrorists.

He urged the government to take strict action against "khawarij terrorists" and their facilitators, adding that the criminals who played with the lives of innocent people do not deserve any concessions.

Dr Naeemi said the entire nation, along with the government and security forces, is committed to eradicating the menace of terrorism. He said there is a need to bring those involved in heinous acts of terrorism to justice.

At least 27 passengers – including women – were martyred and more than 60 others injured when a suicide bomb attack tore through the Quetta railway station Saturday morning.

The bomber detonated the charge in the midst of passengers waiting on the platform to board the Peshawar-bound Jaffar Express, which was set to chug off at 9am.

An outlawed Baloch terrorist group claimed responsibility for the bombing which came a week after terrorists detonated an IED near a girls school and a hospital in Mastung district which claimed eight lives, including those of five children.

First responders saw chaos at the scene as passengers lay dead and injured in pools of blood and a large metal shed of the platform blown off by the impact of the blast.

Firefighters, rescuers and passengers were working through abandoned luggage on the platform, guarded by heavily armed security forces.

Railway officials said that the blast happened near the ticket booth when two trains were scheduled to depart. Rescuers drove the casualties to the Civil Hospital, where a state of emergency was declared.

Reacting to the attack, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the attackers "will pay a heavy price". Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti strongly condemned the attack, calling for an immediate and thorough investigation. He expressed frustration over the continued targeting of innocent civilians, vowing justice for the victims.

"These terrorists are deliberately harming ordinary people, including women and children, and they will face accountability," Bugti said while speaking at a joint presser with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who rushed to Quetta after the bombing, to attend the funerals of the victims.

Bugti appealed to people to "treat terrorists as terrorists" and appreciated that the state was working to counter their threat. He took aim at human rights activists asking why they remained silent on the attack. "Where are they?" Bugti asked.