QUETTA: A strike was observed here on Saturday to mourn the death of 27 people in Friday’s suicide attack on the convoy of Senate Deputy Chairman and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri in Mastung.

All markets and trade and business centres remained closed in the main city and traffic on roads was thin. However, some shops in areas on the outskirts of the city were open.

Workers and supporters of JUI-F held a demonstration in Quetta in protest against the Mastung bomb attack. They marched on main roads and later assembled at the Meezan Chowk where party leaders addressed the gathering.

Maulana Mohammad Torabi and Advocate Malik Sikander in their speeches said that the JUI-F would not be deterred from its ideology and it would continue struggling for the defence of the country, and for the people of Balochistan.

Maulana Haideri in a video message from the Combined Military Hospital Quetta reiterated the party’s resolve not to abandon its struggle for the glory of Islam and Pakistan.

The party called for a strike for Sunday in other areas of Balochistan.

Published in Dawn, May 14th, 2017