The automatic doors of a passenger bus carrying the Sabri qawwali ensemble turned into an unexpected shield during a brazen terrorist attack in the Kalat district of Balochistan, saving many lives that could have been lost had the doors opened mid-assault.
Three people — including qawwali troupe member Ahmed Ali Sabri, his son Raza Ali Sabri, and guitarist Asif — were killed, while over a dozen others were injured in the deadly attack earlier this week.
The assault occurred as the troupe — en route to Quetta from Karachi for a performance — resumed its journey after a stopover in Khuzdar for a meal. According to eyewitnesses, masked gunmen opened indiscriminate fire at the vehicle from close range, riddling it with bullets.
However, the automatic doors of the bus remained sealed during the ambush, preventing the attackers from boarding the bus and effectively turning the doors into a lifesaving barrier.
The wounded driver, in a display of quick thinking, managed to steer the bullet-riddled bus off the main road into nearby woods, bringing the vehicle to a halt near a cluster of trees and preventing further casualties.
According to family sources, Raza Ali Sabri — who had become a father just six months ago — was shot in his sleep during the attack. His father, Ahmed Ali Sabri, and guitarist Asif also succumbed to their injuries. Distraught family members said the deceased were the breadwinners of their household.
"Watching the bodies of my son and grandson shattered my heart," lamented Nadeem Ali Sabri, father of the deceased, while speaking to the media. Their elderly mother, grief-stricken, said her sons had been striving for success in qawwali, but terrorists extinguished all her hopes in an instant.
The journey began early Wednesday morning when the 21-member ensemble, led by Majid Ali Sabri, left Karachi aboard a privately hired bus. After their meal stop in Khuzdar, they resumed travel, unaware that assailants lay in wait.
Speaking to The Express Tribune, Nadeem Ali Sabri recounted how the troupe mistook the initial sound of the attack for a tyre burst, only to be met moments later with a hail of bullets.
During the attack, most passengers lay low to avoid gunfire, while the driver — despite being shot in the arm and leg — managed to divert the bus off the highway to a safer spot. In addition to the three fatalities, at least 15 passengers sustained injuries, some of whom remain in critical condition. Several children onboard — including Majid Ali Sabri's six-year-old son — miraculously survived the deadly ambush. Despite the scale of the tragedy, neither the federal nor the provincial governments have announced any compensation or relief for the bereaved Sabri family so far.
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