QUETTA: Six people were shot dead and three others wounded when armed assailants on two motorbikes opened fire at a shoe shop on Prince Road in Quetta on Monday night.
According to police, the victims were sitting inside a shoe-making store on the main intersection located on Prince and Masjid road, when they were attacked.
The attackers managed to flee from the scene after committing the crime.
“All the victims belonged to Hazara community and it appears to be a case of targeted sectarian killing,” Deputy Inspector General Police (DIG-Operations) Quetta Qazi Wahid told The Express Tribune.
The assailants on two motorbikes escaped after opening fire on the shoe-makers. Resultantly, four people died on the spot while two others received multiple bullet wounds.
A heavy contingent of police rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area.
The dead and injured were taken to Provincial Sandeman Hosptial. “At least six dead bodies and three injured were brought here,” doctors at the hospital said.
The deceased were identified as Mama Karim, Mohammad Hassan, Saeed Ahmed, Qurban Ali, Nadir Ali and Shabir Hussain while injured as Yunus, Lala Musa and Ustad Hadi.
A score of people belonging to Hazara Community reached the hospital and registered their protest by raising slogans against the government and law enforcing agencies over their failure to protect the life and property of civilians.
A group angry protestors also blocked the Jinnah Road and forced shops in the area to shut down. Some people armed with sophisticated weapons harassed the doctors and journalists and surrounded the hospital. An Express News reporter, Arif Mehmood, sustained minor injuries during a stampede at the hospital after some people brandished weapons.
A passer-by identified Nor Azam received bullet wounds when some people resorted to aerial firing as they condemned the killing.
However, security forces and police reached the hospital and controlled the situation.
DIG operations Qazi Wahid said police were investigating the incident and will interview the shopkeepers who were present there when incident took place.
COMMENTS (27)
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@abdullah: So u meant that only sunni should live in Pakistan??? All other should go to the west or migrate? or all those who atleast speak for them shoul leave pak?
Shame on ET for hiding real identity of the people killed i.e. they all were Shias and that's the only reason they were killed ! This nothing but Shia genocide in Pakistan, from Karachi to Quetta to Kurram to Gilgit-Baltistan.Shias are being massacred on daily basis !
Stop Hazara and Baloch genocide
@female Hazarah: dear female why hazara always side with anti baloch establishment .so its your own free choice
@Hasan: why dont u migrate to west
@vasan: I know some channels who will call it clash of two groups even though one groups attacks the other and only members of the second group die.
@Abdul Rahman Khan:
Because it's true facts straight from the DIG. It's called reporting and acknowledging a reality and long history. Otherwise it'll just be cowardly censorship.
I would think wholesale massacres of minorities would in itself increase tension and make a mockery of the nation regardless. Sad, people are more worried about superficial perceptions and uncomfortable sectarian realities which may implicate extremists that share their background, than the actual victims' suffering. Want to avoid mockery? Be brave and serious in tackling the issue head on. Sincerely admit faults openly and rectify them. It's a crisis of Salafi/Deoband/Wahhabi/Sunni supremacists trying to impose their hate ideology, which the state shamelessly continues to facilitate.
And even larger crowd, avoids to tackle sectarianism and religious bigotry seriously, excusing and allowing massacres to flourish because they want to hush hush it instead of openly condemn it. Due to the growing right-wing conservative polarization it might get worst.
Ha Ha, If the killed are of minority faith or sect, the terrorist/sectarian killing becomes "firing incident",. What kind of head line is that.
Another day, another massacre of minorities.
While the government has done a somewhat relatively better job in controlling anti-state religious terrorists that target all Pakistani institutions and citizens in mass bombings (if we ignore the few attacks where schools are still bombed in tribal areas), they have yet to stop the strategic assets' religious terrorists that target non-Sunni Pakistanis.
Why Al Qaeda and its other wings http and ttp and Lashkar Jangavi have targeted shias in Parachinr, Gilgit and Quetta. Simple answer, they know that shias in Pakistan are the frontline if someone try to destablize Pakistan. This is proven from the track record of militancy as they targetted Pak Army, Police, FC and other forces, In civilians, they are only after shias.
This is the failure of Pakistani security forces that anyone who thinks differently is getting killed,hindue girls are forced to convert,Ahmadis don't have any security,christens are also in trouble and Shia community is facing death cause terrorist organizations like so called dife-pakistan are free to spread hate against minorities in Pakistan,today former dictator Zia must be happy in his grave to see this,cause he was the one who introduced religious fanaticism in Pakistan.It is also shame for Pakistani politicians who are silent on this but they worry cause Bilawal Bhutto can't speak Urdu.
@Abdul Rahman Khan: "We should grieve the loss of human lives. Why does the media pinpoint their sectarian connection. This further increases the tension."
We SHOULD mourn the loss of human lives. But if the motive was a sectarian target killing, media absolutely should report that. The tension is increased by the inherent act of target kiling not by the media reporting.
The Provincial Police is of no use, all of them must be terminated from service and “Aman Force" comprising of all tribes must be established to restore peace and tranquility in the city. I am sure everything would settle down soon, there would be no more incidents of target killing or kidnapping. Hundreds have been killed in target killings; how many target killers have been apprehended so far? none. If the performance of a law enforcing agency is null than why spend millions on a useless organization. Is Police and it’s chief accountable to the public? He should resign from his position if he has a bit moral courage.
The siuation in Pakistan has become abhorant. The Pakistani governments lack of action and resolve of the situation can only mean they have an interest in the continuation of the violence. The world is watching and more importantly Allah (Supphanah wa ta Allah) is also watching - shame on you people for calling yourselves Muslims.
My dear sunni brothers, please stop killing the innocent shias in Pakistan. Would very much appreciate it. Thanks a lot!!
This is the fourth incident of massacre ( I would not call it target killing of sectarian killing etc) just within span of two weeks. But we have weak memmories, perhaps only few would have remember those massacres. Hundreds of Hazara men, women and children have be slaughtered but neither Federal Govt nor Provincial Government has taken any positive step to bring these devils to justice. The Provincial Police has sympathy with the so called "strategic assests" and they are not in a mood to take action against them. Let officially annouce to masses of inablility to provide security and permit vulnerable Hazara community to protect themselves.
from Pindi these strategic games are planned and executed. for them people are pawns on a chess board. hazaras are such a persecuted community. what one can really say on such brutalities. it's evil that rules in this so called God's own country.
aoa. what ever is happening is not in the best intrest of our country and humanity. being a Muslim it is a sin and a sin that is unforgiven. Genocide of any caste results in detoriation of the social and civic conditions. which effects each and every member of the socity holisticially. but the adverse effect is undermine by the Ruling Govt. which is the reall negligence on the behalf of the Government. in the end i regret to say that the killings are not goodd for any one . please make our ccountry the best place to live in. i beg the Government and all the stak holders. Pakistan love you.
It's not hazara, it;s SHIAS that are main target..the ethnicity comes later first it's religious identity...since all hazaras are shias they are much easy targets...
Despite all this killing still we are protecting these monsters. They come, kill and move freely. They give openly hate speeches and nobody dare to touch them. If we continue like this time will come in country when every one carry a gun. But we need to know its not Shia and Sunni clash as last year more sunnies were killed then shia by other SUNNIES.
@Hasan: bro i am not comparing but its genocide against shia .Tell me one step that govt has taken.
At least Shias are fortunate enough that their killing get some media Coverage so some action can be taken. What about abduction of Hindus in Balochistan and killing of Ahmedis throughout Pakistan???. In Chenab Nagar ( Rabwah ) Punjab which is a head quarter of Ahmedis in Pakistan the people are killed on a routinely manner. Even the so called liberals and our Tv channels fail to cover this news. Here is the recent incident. Please something for other minorities of Pakistan as well.
http://alufaq.com/rabwah-ahmadi-muslim-killed-pakistan-due-brutal-torture-punjab-police
Generals under General Zia ul Batil sown the seed of hatred. Every person was given either Sunni identity or Shia. Both were pitcher against each other. Leaving the corrupt generals to rule, while Sunni and Shia kept killing for the cause they dont support. Iran and Saudi jimped and they own their sides. Now is the climax. Pakistan was created on communal lines and can not survive without these communals killings. Generals took more than 15 years to create this monster. To put back the monster, the state need without any waite an comprise for another thirty years. Do we see any such commitments. I dont think so
It is genocide of hazara community in Quetta, they are being forced to leave their property, homes by terrorists and our competent government is laid back.
@Abdul, No problem is solved by pushing it under the rug. If Hazaras are being massacred in sectarian conflict and if this is not reported , who will take corrective action ? Its the responsibility of the media to highlight such barbarious acts so that the law enforcement authorities van be held accountable to catch and punish the guilty.
We should grieve the loss of human lives. Why does the media pinpoint their sectarian connection. This further increases the tension and makes the mockery of our nation ....sorry, I mean crowd of peopl that inhibit the country.
Just tell us the names of the victims and we'll know the motive.