QUETTA: Five people belonging to the Shia Hazara community, a man and his son among them, were killed when gunmen stormed a teashop in a busy shopping area near Bacha Khan Chowk here on Sunday evening.

Police and Frontier Corps personnel were on duty at a place only 300 yards away and hundreds of people were shopping in the area when the assailants fired indiscriminately and escape on a motorcycle.

All markets in the city were closed immediately after the attack that triggered panic among people and traffic almost disappeared from roads.

A shopkeeper, Saifullah Achak­zai, was killed when some armed men opened fire on Masjed Road, Fatima Jinnah Road and Iqbal Road.

Protesters take bodies to Bacha Khan Chowk and hold a sit-in

According to police sources, two men with faces covered with masks opened fire in the teashop. Four of the five people targeted by the gunmen died on the spot and the other was severely injured. He died later in the Combined Military Hospital.

The victims were identified as Kazim Ali, his son Zeshan Ali, Niamatullah, Mohammad Ali and Mohammad Idrees. “All the five victims were hit in the head and upper parts of the body with bullets fired from automatic weapons,” hospital officials said.

“It was a sectarian targeted killing,” a police officer told Dawn.

Hundreds of people of the Hazara community rushed to the Civil Hospital after the incident.

Initially they refused to take away the bodies but later carried them to the Bacha Khan Chowk where they held a protest sit-in.

Protesters blocked the Iqbal Road and Mission, Circular and Alamdar roads by placing barricades and burning old tyres.

Addressing the protesters, Balochistan Shia Conference’s leader Daud Agha said targeted killings of members of the Hazara community had been going on for a long time but the government had failed to arrest the killers.

“They are killing your youngsters at will,” he said, adding that it was a matter of great concern that the killers of five people had succeeded in escaping despite police and FC personnel having been deployed in the area.

Threatening to give a call for countrywide protests, he annou­nced that the sit-in would continue till the killers were arrested.

An official said heavy contingents of police and the FC had been deployed around the Bacha Khan Chowk. Balochistan Chief Minister Dr Malik Baloch ordered law-enforcement agencies to take all possible steps to arrest the killers.

He termed recent targeted killings in Quetta an attempt to destabilise the province and warned that the local administration would be held responsible wherever such incidents would take place. “The security forces and administration should take adequate steps to protect the people,” he said.

Negotiations were continuing between leaders of the Hazara community and local administration officials till late night to end the sit-in at the Bacha Khan Chowk.

The Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen announced five days of mourning and gave a call for a strike on Monday. The appeal for strike was supported by the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party, National Party and several other parties.

Police officials face action

Two constables deployed for security of shops of members of the Hazara community in the affected area were arrested and the police beat officer, SHO and DSP concerned were suspended for negligence of duty.

The action was taken after a late-night meeting presided over by the chief minister. It was attended by Home Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, Chief Secretary Saifullah Chattah, Home Secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani, Additional Inspector General of Police Ahsan Mehboob, Quetta Commissioner Kambar Dashti and other officers.

The chief minister ordered arrest of both the police personnel deployed for the security of four shops of members of the Hazara community in the area.

“Investigation should be conducted against both the constables who have been arrested,” Dr Baloch said, adding that the occurrence of such attacks despite the deployment of policemen could not be tolerated.

He asked the officials concerned to submit within 24 hours an investigation report about targeted killings that had taken place over the week.

“Police must arrest the people involved in these incidents because people are expressing disappointment over the performance of security forces,” Dr Baloch said.

He said the government had stopped political interference and nepotism in police and made it an autonomous institution in the province.

“Negligence from the police will not be tolerated anymore,” he said.

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2015

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