Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Thursday, March 28th, 2024

The Target Killings in Quetta, Pakistan

The wave of terrorism and target killings is turning mammoth in the South Asian region and the prime victims of this wave are Afghanistan and Pakistan. Both the countries are suffering to a great extent because of its severe consequences. The terrorist networks are able to penetrate through the security arrangements masterly and can hit their targets at will. All the efforts that have been utilized to bring downfall to this menace seem to have no tangible result and all the factions of society are being affected by its ugly outcomes.

Yesterday's two lethal assaults stand witness to the growing size of the terror. The first one was the suicide attack on ex-president of Afghanistan and head of the High Peace Council Mr. Burhan ud din Rabbani, in Kabul Afghanistan, that resulted into his death and the second one (which is also the matter of discussion in this editorial) was the assault on the innocent people who were travelling from Quetta, Pakistan towards Iran for the sake of business or religious pilgrimage; the incident resulted in the death of 21 people and injury to almost 6 others.

Though both the incidents are much apart from each other as far as their details are concerned, but one thing is common in them and that is the growing nature of uncontrolled terror in the region.

The later of the above mentioned incidents, according to the reports, happened near Mastung district in Balochistan province of Pakistan. The assault was carried out on the pilgrims' bus that was moving from Quetta to Iran, by the terrorists, riding bikes.

They shot on the bus, stopped it and carried out selective killings. The victims of the incidents were the Balochistan's minority ethnic community 'Hazaras'. The incident took the lives of 18 people on the spot and further, to add brutality to the incident, the people who were moving from Hazara Town, Burori, Quetta to bring the dead bodies of the deceased were targeted on Akhthar Abad. This incident resulted in the death of 3 people.

Hazaras in Quetta and around it are being targeted brutally for almost a decade. They have been the victim of sectarian and ethnic violence and have lost almost 500 innocent and valuable lives. The attacks on them have been in the form of bombing and shooting that have been targeting people from all walks of life; the only thing being common in them is their identity as 'Shia Hazara'.

In most of the cases, including the one being discussed now, the banned extremist religious group "Lashkar-e-Jangvi" has claimed the responsibility. The group is said to have ties with Al-Qaida and have been getting strength in Pakistan, especially in Quetta and sectarian violence has been on the top of its objectives.

The government of Pakistan has failed to carry out appropriate measures to tackle this group and it is getting out of it loose control.

Growing terrorism in Pakistan has influenced the minority groups to a large extend, and they, though have (especially in case of Hazaras) very positive role in the development and betterment of the country, are being victimized with great ease and the government has been able to show nothing more than helpless incapacity.

The international humanitarian organizations have not focused on the issue as well and they remain insensitive to it though it is an evident and repeated violation of human rights; it has been increasing recently and can bring further miseries in the times to come if not handled properly.