WHILE most of the world welcomed 2014 with celebrations, Pakistan rang in the New Year with a deadly suicide bombing in Quetta on Wednesday. A vehicle loaded with explosives rammed into a bus in the outskirts of the Balochistan capital carrying Shia pilgrims returning from Iran. As per reports on Thursday, three of the victims had died while several more were injured. The atrocity illustrates that while dates may change and there may be highs and lows in violence, in Pakistan very little changes where the ongoing wave of religious and sectarian terrorism is concerned and the threat it poses to society. It shows that militants are as unrepentant as ever and willing to shed innocent blood to carry forward their agenda — fuelling sectarian hatred in this case. Authorities from the president and prime minister on down have expressed shock over the incident. But much more than outrage and sympathy is required to neutralise the killers that have drenched this country in blood.

For the last couple of years, Balochistan’s roads and highways have become open hunting grounds for terrorists; pilgrims were also targeted in 2011’s bus ambush in Mastung. While the new government in Balochistan has taken steps to increase security, such as providing escorts to buses, clearly more needs to be done. After all, when IEDs or suicide bombers are involved, there is little that escort vehicles can do; a vehicle was tagging the ill-fated bus on Wednesday but obviously could not prevent the bombing. The apparent remedy is to strike at the root of the problem. The security establishment has a fair idea about the whereabouts and bases of sectarian and religious militants in Balochistan, especially considering the thick security blanket over the province. The infrastructure of terror needs to be dismantled while better intelligence is required to prevent future atrocities. Balochistan’s terrorism problem will not be solved overnight; however, if the authorities continue to look the other way while the killers go about their business with impunity, more tragedies can be expected.