QUETTA: The Shia Hazara community agreed late on Thursday night to end their protest sit-in after Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan assured them that strict action would be taken against elements who carried out the Mastung bomb attack on pilgrims which left at least 25 Hazara people dead.

Hundreds of Hazara men, women and children held protest sit-in in the city’s Shuhada chowk for about 48 hours in extremely cold weather with sub-zero temperatures at night on Sunday.

Sit-ins and demonstrations were held in Karachi, Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi.

According to an announcement made on Thursday night, the funeral of the Mastung attack victims will be held on Friday.

Earlier the protesters had decided not to burry the dead and continue their protest till the acceptance of their demands by the federal government, even though Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch had visited them on Wednesday and assured them to address their grievances.

A team of the federal government led by the Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar dashed to Quetta on the directives of the prime minister and held talks with the leaders of the community.

Chaudhry Nisar addressed the protesting Hazaras and assured them that a targeted operation would be launched against people involved in attacks on members of their community and that steps would be taken to provide security to them.

The interior minister was accompanied by Information Minister Pervez Rasheed and the provincial chief minister.He expressed solidarity with the grief-stricken families and said the government would not allow terrorists to keep attacking people in Quetta and other parts of the country.

Later, the government team held talks with the leaders of Hazara community and convened to them a message from the prime minister about launching a targeted operation against terrorists.

Those who represented the Hazara community included Hazara Democratic Party president Abdul Khaliq Hazara, Allama Nasir Abbas, Allama Hashim Moosavi, Allama Jumma Asadi and Balochistan Assembly member Mohammad Raza Agha.

Later, addressing a press conference at the Nichari Imambargah Chaudhry Nisar said that Hazaras agreed to end their protest after he had conveyed the message of the prime minister to them.

Khaliq Hazara and other leaders of the community were present at the press conference.

The interior minister said the government would identify and arrest elements behind attacks on Shias in Balochistan.

He said Hazaras were patriotic Pakistanis and they had rendered immense sacrifices for the country.

Answering a question, Chaudhry Nisar said the government had given a timeframe to Hazara leaders for launching the operation.

Earlier the federal ministers visited the Combined Military Hospital to inquire after the health of those injured in the Mastung attack.

They held a separate meeting with the chief minister.

Thousands demonstrated in several cities across the country on Thursday against the killing of pilgrims in the Mastung bomb attack.

Thousands of people demonstrated in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Rawalpindi and other towns against what protesters called the “genocide” of Shias.

“It is a genocide of Shias,” Majlis-i-Wahdatul Muslimeen spokesman Mohammad Muzahir said.