Unanimous resolution: NA condemn Karachi, Taftan atrocities

Interior minister claims six security alerts had been issued to the Sindh govt.

ISLAMABAD:

Lawmakers in the lower house of parliament joined forces to present a united front on Tuesday when they unanimously passed two resolutions condemning the attacks on the Karachi airport and the Shia pilgrims in Taftan.

The resolutions lauded security personnel who laid down their lives while protecting the country during Sunday’s brazen attack on the Karachi airport and condemned the terrorist attack in Taftan, Balochistan.

During Tuesday’s session, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan briefed the National Assembly on the swift response by security forces following six-hour gun battle at Pakistan’s busiest air hub.

Interestingly, while the interior minister was briefing the parliament on Sunday’s attack, he was informed by the opposition that a group of gunmen on motorbikes opened fire on the Airport Security Force (ASF) training facility next to Karachi airport.

Taking the interior minister by surprise, vice chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Shah Mehmood Qureshi pointed out that the ASF facility in Karachi had been attacked.

The interior minister, visibly shaken by the information, resumed his speech after a brief pause and said that the country was facing an extremely difficult situation for the past 13 years.

Nisar claimed that the assault began at around 11.00 pm and lasted for six hours, with gunfire, explosions and a raging fire at the airport premises. He said the militants stormed the airport in groups.

The minister highlighted that the motive behind Sunday’s attack was to seize people as hostages and then negotiate a deal with the authorities. However, they did not succeed in their plans.

Interior minister said that the Interior Ministry had issued six security alerts to the provincial government of Sindh since November, of which two were for Karachi.

Calling for unity, he said that all provinces along with the centre should be on the same page and that everyone needs to be aware of their duties. “I could give a political speech, but this will be unfair to Pakistan — pointing fingers at each other will be wrong,” he said.

Following Nisar’s speech, PTI leader Qureshi vociferously criticised authorities for their negligence that led to the death of seven people trapped in the cold storage. Subsequently, he praised Express News for the channel’s efforts to draw attention to the matter.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 11^th, 2014.