LASHKAR GAH: Gun­men opened fire on a gathering of Afghan clerics in the southern province of Helmand, killing seven people, police said on Wednesday.

The Ulema Council, the highest religious authority in the country, came under attack after it had repeatedly announced its support for security forces fighting the Taliban insurgents.

“The meeting was ongoing when two Taliban gunmen attacked the gathering,” police official Jan Aqa said.

Four civilians and three police personnel were killed and seven people wounded in the attack at Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital.

Afghan forces rushed to the scene and killed the two gunmen in the ensuing three-hour gunbattle, security officials said.

Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack and said 15 officials were killed.

Numbering some 3,000 clerics and scholars and headed by a 150-strong National Council, the powerful clerics can sway public opinion significantly through mosques across the country.

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play

Opinion

Editorial

Property valuation
Updated 31 Oct, 2024

Property valuation

Market valuation rates will not help boost tax revenues without plugging such loopholes in the system.
Hitting a wall
31 Oct, 2024

Hitting a wall

PAKISTAN still has a long way to go in defeating polio. Despite our decades-long fight against the debilitating...
Kurram violence
31 Oct, 2024

Kurram violence

DESPITE years of intermittent and bloody conflict in Kurram, the state has been unable to bring lasting peace to ...
Court business
Updated 30 Oct, 2024

Court business

The unity and commonality of purpose on display in the full court meeting are what will help the SC endure.
UNRWA ban
30 Oct, 2024

UNRWA ban

NOT content with the war of extermination it is executing against the Palestinian people, Israel now wants to ensure...
Cricket changes
30 Oct, 2024

Cricket changes

WIN or lose, Pakistan cricket seems to be embroiled in a constant state of flux. Just when things seemed to be...