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11/02/2024 11:40:05 am

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Pakistan Violence Targeting Hazaras Kill At Least 13

Violence in Pakistan

(Photo : Reuters) Shi'ite Muslim men from the ethnic Hazara minority mourn beside the coffins of their relatives who were killed after gunmen opened fire on a bus during a funeral ceremony in Quetta October 23, 2014.

Three separate attacks including shootings and bombings have shaken the city of Quetta in Pakistan on Thursday, leaving at least 13 people dead and reflecting the violence in the country especially in Baluchistan Province.

In the first attack, eight men were killed while two were injured as gunmen fired on a bus, reports the police and rescue officials. According to them, the victims were Hazaras, or members of a Shiite Muslim minority who have been targeted repeatedly by extremists.

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After the latest attack, the Hazara leaders expressed their anger and frustration over the government as they pressed that almost 2,000 people have already been killed and the killers remain unpunished.

Abul Khaliq Hazara, the Quetta-based leader of the said group, added that the gunmen escaped easily and that they feel the police authorities could not protect them.

Between four and six gunmen reportedly instigated the shooting. The victims were vegetable sellers who were returning to their village  from the market, authorities added.

The other attack was reportedly a bomb that was embedded in a motorcycle. The motorcycle exploded near a convoy that included security forces, killing two people and leaving 12 others wounded.

The blast was occurred while the security forces were conducting a search after the attack on the bus of the Hazaras, the authorities said. They also added that Baluch separatists might be the ones responsible for the attack as the group is known to fight against the Pakistani military.

The last attack was directed at religious figure Maulana Fazalur Rehman, who is the leader for the fundamentalist party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F. The attack happened after he spoke at a rally at a stadium in Quetta and the authorities noted that a suicide bomber ran up to Rehman's vehicle.

The Jundallah militants, related to the Talibans, are the ones suspected to be responsible for the said attack.

Rehamn said he was not injured in the attack but felt the impact of the bombing. The religious leader survived two other assassinations in the past.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Abdul Malik Baluch, the chief minister of Baluchistan, did not tolerate the attacks and ordered the authorities to protect the Hazaras.

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