Pakistan

Twin suicide attacks at Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine

Eight people have been killed as a result of twin blasts at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine in Karachi.

Ali Syed/Shaheryar Popalzai October 07, 2010

KARACHI: Initial reports suggest that two suicide bombers attacked the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine killing eight people in Karachi on Thursday.

The blasts went off at the entrance as people were queuing up to enter the shrine. The bodies and injured have been taken to Jinnah and Civil hospital in Karachi.

Talking to the media at the site, Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza said the police had found two heads that possibly belonged to the suicide bombers.

Eight people were killed and over 60 injured as a result of the blast.

A number of political parties and trade associations have called for a strike tomorrow (Friday).

A strike was being observed in Karachi on the call of Sunni Wahdat Council in reaction to the killing of one of its leaders Maulvi Muhammad Ameen.

In a similar incident earlier in July, more than 35 people were killed in triple blasts at the Data Darbar in Lahore.

End of live updates.

10:05pm

Fauzia Wahab on Witness with Quatrina asks "Had there been cameras installed, would it have made any difference?"

PML-N leader Siddiqul Farooq says it is the federal government's fault that a consensus could be reached in Parliament on tackling terrorism.

9:55pm

Secretary Education Sindh says all schools will remain open tomorrow.

All Karachi Trade Union announces one day strike.

S_Faraz_Ahmed Barbaric is the word for what happened in #khitoday,if any self respecting govt they would have left long ago#Pakistan #Karachi

YusraSAskari The reality of #Karachi : 2 hours after a blast life returns to normal! Are we resilient or have we just become de- sensitized?

9:35pm

Express News reports the Taliban have claimed responsibility for the suicide attacks on the shrine.

9:20pm

Advisor to Chief Minister Sindh Sharmila Farooqui says that she visited the shrine a day earlier and the electronic gates and the metal detectors were working fine.

Farooqui says “suicide attack is a phenomenon that nobody in this world has been able to curtail.”

She says the security was on high alert and the arrangements were “next to perfect.”

The minister says that she herself is a follower of Abduallah Shah Ghazi and condemns the attack.

9:08pm

Several petrol pumps and markets have closed down around the city, after the blasts.

BeingSamee Family just reached home... Millennium Mall, and other shops in Gulastan e Johar (en route North Nazimabad) closed ! #Karachi

Farman21 @abidifactor no all private and government schools will closed a/c to samaa tv #Karachi #Pakistan

ProPTI #Pakistan why is it so that no special warnings were issued at #karachi shrine specially after yesterday murder of pro taliban scholar

9:02pm

According to Express 24/7 reporter Ahmed Jung the first bomber was being checked at the main gate when he blew himself up, while the second blast took place at the steps which lead up to the shrine.

Express 24/7 reporter Masroor Hausen says unconfirmed reports suggest 90 people have been injured and some of them are in critical states.

9:00pm

Police officials claim to have capture a number of suspects who are being interrogated.

rai_azlan Abdullah Shah Ghazi is a person who is thought to be the reason that the Sea Water do not reach the populated area of#Karachi

madeehai I am a devotee of Allah saieen.. Used to visit Abduallah gazi when I lived in #karachi it is such a peaceful place...why#pakistan

rizwanharun Zulfiqar mirza wants mazars closed for one year#karachi is he made.

quest4clarity And the RAW, Blackwater, Mosad conspiracy theories begin to fly. This is what prevents us from dealing with the REAL problem! #Karachi

8:50pm

MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar says that his party and party chief have strongly condemned this act of cowardice, and that there was a nexus of criminal mafia and extremist elements operating in Karachi.

MQM has also announced one day of mourning.

Rectified_Guy #MQM is the only party that highlighted the Presence of Talibans RT @ravezjunejo: #Karachi #Pakistan party#MQM

8:40pm

According to a report in this paper, closed-circuit TV (CCTV) cameras put up all over the city to monitor traffic violations and suspicious activity have been off for the past four days.

8:10pm

More than 60 injured have been brought to the emergency wards, say hospital sources.

Bibi Pak Daman shrine in Lahore has also been closed.

@thekarachikid: What kind of idiots bomb the shrine of a man who according to legends stopped storms and cyclones from hitting Karachi?

8:00pm

Secretary of Auqaf committee has informed IG Sindh that he has ordered all shrines across Karachi be closed.

Members of the forensics lab are gathering evidence to uncover what was used to make the bomb.

According to hospital staff ten injured are in critical condition.

Faria_Khan_ Does anyone really know what is going on in#Pakistan?....Wheels within wheels, especially in #Karachi.#Pakistan

7:45pm

President Asif Zardari, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif and Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain have condemned the attacks.

kashaziz Blasts at Abdullah Shah Ghazi's shrine, 10 killed 65 injured. #Karachi once again gone to dogs.

kashaziz Blast at shrine happened a day after media reports that CCTV cameras across #Karachi are defunct.

7:40pm

The Sunni Tehreek has announced a three day mourning.

Amirazher easy solutions all shrines in #Karachi are ordered to close down citing security issues http://t.co/UJhLo6w Na hoga bans na bajeygee bansuri

Farman21 @YusraSAskari yes, there are people protesting in Nazimabad and Lines Area #karachi

7:35pm

According to an eyewitness, the first blast occurred when a guard tried to stop a suicide bomber and he blew himself up.

7:30pm

Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza has said that two heads have been found at the site. He maintained that the security at the site was not lax. He indicated that the blasts might be 'suicidal' in nature.

faisaljamkhan Karachi blasts work of none other then #RAW #Blackwaters #Mosad

DrAwab Raises a grave Question - with Zardari in town security was diverted to protect the unworthy VViP's and NOT the people#karachi #fb

7:25pm

According Seemi Jamali, head of emergency, over 50 injured have been brought to Jinnah Hospital.

According to Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza the blasts occurred at the gate of the shrine.

7:20pm

According to police reports the blasts occurred within the span of a few minutes.

7:15pm

A bomb disposal squad has been dispatched to the site.

The lights have been shut off at the shrine and law enforcement agencies are asking the public not to come near the shrine.

7:10pm

Initial reports suggest that the blasts were caused by a suicide bomber.

7:05pm

The injured are being shifted to Jinnah Hospital. Emergency has been declared at all hospitals in Karachi.

A large number of people were gathered at the shrine.

COMMENTS (42)

Humanity | 14 years ago | Reply "I am neither responsible for their accountability nor am I their supporter. Why was this ridiculous question directed at me Humanity?" There you go. The usual denial and dismissal of the question being asked to wash the crime off the conscience and to move on till the next luke warm condemnation of loss of innocent life carried out by the thaekedaars of islam. BTW, this is not a personal question. This is a question for the collective national conscience. The overwhelming majority, led by the mullah and the self preserving leaders, drove the country into becoming a 'vice and virtue police state'. It is an undeniable fact that the mother of travesties happened when the state succumbed to the mullah and legalize discrimination and division among its citizens. Though various sects disagree among themselves about the definition of a muslim, all the sects banded in their zeal to de-muslimize the Ahmadis and ended up steering the country towards this most un-islamic incarnation. The evil has come home to roost. The 1953 Munir-Kayani report should be mandatory study for each and every Pakistani. It explains very clearly what to do and what not to do to become a viable state once again. An excerpt from the report is included below. If Pakistan is to exist as a respectable nation, it must re-write the constitution based on the Jinnah's mandate of August 11, 1947, guaranteeing the basis freedoms. The nation must adopt the time tested attributes of a respectable nation, namely unity, faith, and discipline. Leave alone the individual to manage his or her covenant with the Creator. "“Pakistan is being taken by the common man, though it is not, as an Islamic State. This belief has been encouraged by the ceaseless clamour for Islam and Islamic State that is being heard from all quarters since the establishment of Pakistan. The phantom of an Islamic State has haunted the Musalman throughout the ages and is a result of the memory of the glorious past when Islam rising like a storm from the least expected quarter of the world—wilds of Arabia—instantly enveloped the world, pulling down from their high pedestal gods who had ruled over man since the creation, uprooting centuries old institutions and superstitions and supplanting all civilisations that had been built on an enslaved humanity………….. He (the Musalman) therefore finds himself in a state of helplessness, waiting for someone to come and help him out of this morass of uncertainty and confusion. And he will go on waiting like this without anything happening. Nothing but a bold re-orientation of Islam to separate the vital from the lifeless can preserve it as a World Idea and convert the Musalman into a citizen of the present and the future world from the archaic in congruity that he is today…. It is this lack of bold and clear thinking, the inability to understand and take decisions which has brought about in Pakistan a confusion which will persist and repeatedly create situations of the kind we have been inquiring into until our leaders have a clear conception of the goal and of the means to reach it. And as long as we rely on the hammer when a file is needed and press Islam into service to solve situations it was never intended to solve, frustration and disappointment must dog our steps. The sublime faith called Islam will live even if our leaders are not there to enforce it. It lives in the individual, in his soul and outlook, in all his relations with God and men, from the cradle to the grave, and our politicians should understand that if Divine commands cannot make or keep a man a Musalman, their statutes will not.”"

Sadia Hussain | 14 years ago | Reply The missing link in the war against terror is that despite of being entangled in this battle for nearly a decade some of us still perceive this war to be imposed upon us. The war against religious extremism is not only war of our survival but the success or failure of this war will determine the future of our coming generations. The attack on Abdullah Shah Ghazi Shrine was not conspiracy by the external actors but an action of our own extremists.

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Natasha | 14 years ago | Reply //Any accountability for the supporters and the sympathizers of the perpetrators of this travesty and those against other sects and faiths// I am neither responsible for their accountability nor am I their supporter. Why was this ridiculous question directed at me Humanity?

Taha | 14 years ago | Reply Army funded maddariss for Afghan War, now we should revamp army kicking all those who took part in Afghan war directly/ Indirectly, then only this thing can be stopped. Else blaming one sect or other wont do help, because they are funding one sect today, they can fund any other sect tomorrow.

Asadullah | 14 years ago | Reply @ Humanity: These are the same wahhabis/ deobandis who attacked Ahmedis in Lahore and Christians in godhra...have you forgotten that the men who attacked ahmedis belong to the same wahhabi/ deobandi taliban groups??? didn't they stay for 4-5 days at tableeghi jamat markaz in raiwind before carrying out the attacks??? why we are so coward to point at them??? are you afraid? well i am not...see how they shy away from condemning suicide bombings... http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/19-deobandi-leadership-shies-away-from-condemning-suicide-bombings-250-hh-11

Akifa | 14 years ago | Reply why are people "liking" this story?

Salim Ansari | 14 years ago | Reply @Shani Syed ".... I feel sad for the people who lost their lives at Mumbai attacks and I feel the pain more when it happens in Pakistan cause we created this place in the name of Islam and Islam holds no place for violence for any human being irrespective Muslim or not ... " You, are a true Muslim.

Salim Ansari | 14 years ago | Reply More Muslim on Muslim violence. I have not heard about Hindus blowing up each others temples, have you ?

Talha | 14 years ago | Reply The Justice Munir report on the 1953 anti Ahmadiyya riots warned of this. They will start with one and then engulf all the rest. Well the people of Pakistan wanted it, they wanted the 'real' Islam, enjoy the fruits of the seeds you sowed decades ago.

Humanity | 14 years ago | Reply @ Asadulllah "we have to point our finger in right direction so that people should know that these are wahhabis/ deobandis who preach hate amongst true muslims " And who should be pointed out for preaching hate among true muslims when Shia Muslims, Ahmadi Muslims, Hindus, and Christians are killed? Who has the authority to certify a true muslim? @ Natasha "May the perpetrators rot in hell." Any accountability for the supporters and the sympathizers of the perpetrators of this travesty and those against other sects and faiths? What part of "There is NO compulsion in religion. (Al-Baqara)" do people not understand? Unfortunately, it will be business as usual in a day or two and this event will fade away in the moth eaten creases of the national conscience till the next harvest of the legalized and nation sponsored bigotry and intolerance.

Shani Syed | 14 years ago | Reply Dear brothers, I dont promote hatred violence or terrorism be it any one, Had this happened in india to any muslim or any human being I would have been equally sad about it, cause innocent people loose their lives whether in Pakistan, America india iraq any where, and Yes I am patriotic about Pakistan and proud of it and dont need to prove it!! and I have my priorities straight thank you to be a Human first then Muslim and Pakistani, I dont rejoice at what happens in USA on 9-11 or Kashmir, I feel sad for the people who lost their lives at Mumbai attacks and I feel the pain more when it happens in Pakistan cause we created this place in the name of Islam and Islam holds no place for violence for any human being irrespective Muslim or not, this place should have been the safest one and its sadder when fellow Muslims do this to each other who are brain washed and malign the face of religion and country and Allah says you kill a person you have killed the entire humanity and yes our religion has no place for them unless Allah forgives them if they repent thats totally dependant on Allah. No I am not shying away from the point that our Holy Prophet (S.A.W) did warn us about the sects and hence the results in right infront of your eyes... I My point is to respect each others cause every one has One God that is Allah Almighty and let Allah be the judge of who is right and who is wrong and no one no man is superior to Allah Subhanahu, but never stop your quest for seeking the true path...its this what has ruined us differences spitting on each others faces, brothers in Islam our Prophet S.AW who you believe in taught us to be compassionate for even animals, neither did I mean to be disrespectful to any one, my point was simply this that at this time we should pray for the ones who lost their lives and find those who did this and punish them irrespective they belong to any sect, religion or country. @ Anonymous what I wrote above is for a good cause and I could have been equally spiteful to you but I dont find you even worth answering. For the rest of you if you cant understand the message I tried conveying was simple be one as a Ummah and a nation especialy in moments of grief, then I'm sorry I wasted my time. I have no intentions of saying any thing on this piece of article. May Allah guide us all Ameen.

Nageen | 14 years ago | Reply Shame on them who did it...Cowards kill innocent unarmored people by back-stabbing If you are Pakistanis please change yourself to be better positive people. If you are not a Pakistani please please go away......... we don't really want to mourn more innocent deaths....Have Mercy. Oh God! Have mercy!

love Ahmedineejad | 14 years ago | Reply DIVIDE and rule, old policy and they are enjoying.

Natasha | 14 years ago | Reply May the perpetrators rot in hell.

User | 14 years ago | Reply @ Shani Syed you have too much wisdom when the terror struck to your own legs. You were one of the mulsim who was spiting venom for India on other article. I do not think you are acting the same what tyou preach others. Mind your own business and be off the ET board.

A Suhail | 14 years ago | Reply So first it was mosques, then markets and now shrines. Soon it will be resturants, marriage halls and coffee places. These beasts will not stop until the mindset which breeds hatred is stopped and that's not gona happen.

Anoop | 14 years ago | Reply Here we go again. Hope the casualty remains low.

Asadullah | 14 years ago | Reply Shani your the biggest fool i have ever seen!!! yes our beloved Prophet (peace and mercy be upon him) foretold us about the 73 sects and also about the one on right path amongst them...so please don't shy away from recognizing your sect...we have to point our finger in right direction so that people should know that these are wahhabis/ deobandis who preach hate amongst true muslims and are against AwliyaAllah. NOTE: Shani please show some respect when u write Prophet (peace and mercy be upon him)

Naz Ebr | 14 years ago | Reply We reap what we sow! Our generals nourish the bloodbath of poor Afghans......while we pay the price! See whats in here...http://tribune.com.pk/story/59559/pakistan-spy-agency-thwarting-taliban-talks-report/

Indian | 14 years ago | Reply so many innocents are being killed . please have tolerance. There is only one God . and that is God but there are many ways to reach that God .These Sufi saints are even revered by Hindus in India. Please donot destroy their shrines. They have taught love and brotherhood laways. AN INDIAN

Tariq Jameel | 14 years ago | Reply @ Shani Syed...yeah shame on all of you for being ostriches. the sect differences are real, open ur eyes. they cannot be removed, open ur eyes. if the prophet did not define sects, it doesnt mean they dont exist. Be a pakistani and kille each other like they are famous for???remem sialkot incident and hundreds tht go unreported??? the muslims in india r not better, theyre the same everywhere. Did u read last week incident in Italy, where a muslim killed his sister over religious issues. you tell others we r one. No sir, i dont want to be like you napakistani. people like u belong to a category called "india, america, israel are behind everything. muslims CANNOT do this." accept tht we are alone responsible fr this.

User | 14 years ago | Reply I have fully condem the suiside attacks in karachi. The persons who take this have no link with islam. He also odered the IG sindh to give him report.

Humanity | 14 years ago | Reply @Shani Syed "He who was right will go to heaven and those who are astray will be in hell. " With all due respect, My Syed, don't forget that the Pakistani nation has taken upon itself the responsibility to certify who will go to heaven and who will go to hell. So don't lecture about what the Holy Prophet (SAW) defined. The nation supported and sponsored the mullah to override what the Holy Prophet (SAW) defined as a Muslim. Just remember that "Allah kee lathi bae-awaaz hae". The evil that is created by the so called ulema and the nation is getting back to them as was told in a hadith. These are very sad events bringing untold misery and heartbreak to so many. However, these events should cause the God fearing to reflect why things have gone so wrong. God help us all. Ameen.

salem | 14 years ago | Reply Please pray and unite to become one pakistani.

Nouman Younas | 14 years ago | Reply this is really bad scene.. there is no cctv camera in shrine which shows govt working

Shani Syed | 14 years ago | Reply @ Tariq jameel and all the others who are indulging in sect differences even on this forum... Shame on you! All of you! and all of us!!!! We cant even be one on ET forum let alone be a nation if you want to stop sect violence learn to do it your self first by creating tolerance in your self and ability to bear each others point of you, The Muslims in india are better atleast they are united and one against the babri masjid issue, look at us a tradegy struck people died tthe death did not differenciate who belonged to which sect niether will God or the Prophet, He who was right will go to heaven and those who are astray will be in hell. Did our prophet define any sects in religion did he ever say I am hanafi sunni, beralvi, deobandi wahabi or shia??? Muslims cant be one then violence shall continue till each one of us are dead! Muslims,, brothers and sisters for Allah be one, Be a Pakistani, Have tolerance and love for fellow Pakistanis and Human beings even if they are not Muslims even if they are not Pakistanis but are human as taught by our beloved Prophet PBUH and the Command of our Allah Almighty, Stop fighting here and pulling each others leg be ashamed and pray for those who lost their lives and have sympathy for each other so Allah may have mercy on you, its a request.

nooralam | 14 years ago | Reply hajrat abdullah shagai mazar sussaid bomb balest don t what to think zulfiqar mirza imditlly out of govt to ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? shind govt??????????????????????????

Amir | 14 years ago | Reply What I do not understand is that so far only two terrorists have been caught in the act, and that was on May 28, 2010. Not by the law enforcement agency but by the people they were attacking. Initial investigation led them to madrassas and people responsible in Karachi, in Rahim Yar Khan. Why has the government taken no action. Our media has also failed us in a sense that they like reporting current affair only, but do not report or follow up on what happened in the past, and how it may be linked. Has anyone asked or investigated who these two boys are? Which mosque or sect they followed? WE do not like to know the truth?

andhaer nagri | 14 years ago | Reply The state certified muslims are in full action. “whatsoever a man soweth, that he shall also reap".

Tariq Jameel | 14 years ago | Reply @ KHIBLASTS...i ws being sarcastic if u had read carefully, i said ppl r labelled infidels on their beliefs but deobandis r not for their actions

Ayesha Hoda | 14 years ago | Reply This is so bad. Was at do talwar when it happened. The policeman who told me was so casual about it. Feel a little numb since it happened. Don't what to think or say really.

sam mandi | 14 years ago | Reply Are we heading towards becoming another Afghanistan? It has become everyday business in the city like Karachi.

KHIBLASTS | 14 years ago | Reply Mr. Tariq Jameel... Shias are infidels?? Are u feeling alright Sir?

military inteligence | 14 years ago | Reply defininately agencies doin ithh ..........

Irfan | 14 years ago | Reply Are Twin bomb blast at Abdullah shah ghazi giving us message, we muslims or Pakistani not saved at our peacefull places, are we avoid to go our religious places?

Tariq Jameel | 14 years ago | Reply Dear Omar Khan, yes the same deoband school of teaching tht is behind Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Sipah-e-Sahaba, Taliban and a number of other terrorist organisations. Its you who needs research, and if you belong to the same school of thought, then reconsider. http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/19-deobandi-leadership-shies-away-from-condemning-suicide-bombings-250-hh-11 only the ignorant dont know that deobandis, wahabis/salafis have destroyed religion.

Hasan | 14 years ago | Reply

Well Tariq Jameel Sahab with all due respect Maulana Amin happen to be the follower of Deoband School of Teaching.

Also a leader of what was formerly Sipah-e-Sahaba. So the response is hardly surprising.

faraz | 14 years ago | Reply Our "strategic assets" have struck again. Our islamic state freely allowed different sects to spread hatred against each other for 3 decades; this was bound to happen.

Omar Khan | 14 years ago | Reply Well Tariq Jameel Sahab with all due respect Maulana Amin happen to be the follower of Deoband School of Teaching. So lets do more research before we stereotype certain sects of Islam.

Hamood | 14 years ago | Reply When will we take action against this sect who believes in killing anybody who does not agree with them?

TorquoiSe | 14 years ago | Reply another attempt to excite clashes between different sects in Pakistan!

ARF | 14 years ago | Reply All I can say is besharam people these are who don't even leave a shrine.

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