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The Pakistan Army has called for a unified response to what it said was a "malicious" campaign by hostile intelligence agencies and anti-state elements to give a sectarian and ethnic colour to a recent string of terrorist incidents in the country that mainly targeted minority Shias.
"Having failed to divide us through terrorism, our enemy is now trying to target and fragment us along sectarian/ethnic lines which merits a unified national response," said an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) press release on Wednesday.
The people of Pakistan need to be cognisant of the campaign, which is also "unwittingly" being spread on social media, said the statement, adding that the army is closely following the situation.
"For us every shaheed [martyred]/injured is equal, regardless of sect/ethnicity and indeed is a great loss," it quoted Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa as saying.
"We all are Pakistanis and Muslims who fully respect the religious rights of our Pakistani minorities."
According to the ISPR, the army chief interacted with religious clergy of all sects over the last few days to seek their involvement in defeating the "campaign" to create sectarian tension.
The army iterated that those responsible for the bombings in Parachinar shall be brought to law and the victims will be compensated without any discrimination.
"Alhamdulillah, we have brought security situation in country including Fata under control and shall not allow its regression at any cost," said Gen Bajwa.
The army chief was to spend the second day of Eid in Parachinar, where at least 72 people died and 200 others were injured in twin blasts last Friday. However, his visit was postponed due to bad weather.
In the days leading up to Eid, the country saw a spate of terror attacks that left at least 90 people dead.
On Friday, besides the Parachinar bombings, at least 14 people including 10 policemen were killed in a blast targeting police in Quetta that was claimed by both the militant Islamic State group and the Jamaatul Ahrar, and in Karachi four policemen were killed in a drive-by shooting as they opened their fast at a roadside restaurant the same day.
Members of the Shia community in Parachinar, capital of Kurram Agency ─ a mainly Shia area in the tribal belt ─ had earlier held protests against the attack claimed by the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi al-Alami.
They said that they would end the sit-in after Gen Bajwa and Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar came to negotiate with them.
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Comments (53) Closed
Jun 28, 2017 06:07pm
Comments which were required on time.great job.
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Jun 28, 2017 06:11pm
Pak Army Zindabad, keep up the good job Gen. Bajwa.
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Jun 28, 2017 06:13pm
well done
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Jun 28, 2017 06:29pm
Maybe COAS should try visiting Parachinar then, and stop giving excuses of weather difficulties. The fact is that not a single official has even bothered to visit Parachinar to condole even after 3rd attack this year alone, let alone listing to their grievances.
Parachinar is the only tribal area which has wholeheartedly supported every single military operation in FATA. They supported even when rest of the country was still trying to single out the "Good Talibans" from military operation.
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Jun 28, 2017 06:35pm
You are absolutely right Sir! At the same token we must also realize that people living in border areas are more vulnerable to such threats so we have to be more vigilant and provide them more security.
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Jun 28, 2017 06:36pm
Action is required not words or press release or statement or sound bite
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Jun 28, 2017 06:43pm
Sir. Actions (or absence of) speak louder than words. What actions have been taken against the people (actually animals in people's garb) who orchestrated the Parachinar and Quetta carnage?
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Jun 28, 2017 06:57pm
There are black sheeps everywhere in Pakistan and living beyond means and must be taken care of to nullify the malicious campaign of hostile elements.
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Jun 28, 2017 06:58pm
Yes. Its not at all Saudi and Iran sectarian rivalry and supports. It is all other agencies.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:09pm
I don't get the point, when the border with Afghanistan is closed no such attacks takes place, when the border opens within a month all these terror attacks start taking place. Close the border that is the only solution left.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:24pm
Deaths are only numbers to us...more will die and our best response will be " we are united" "we are succeeding" "enemy has failed"...WHAT Enemy?While the incompetent corrupt supporting terrorism force our depts to keep mull for political correctness; more die...so we should expect more lip service with out any effective action from here on end.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:29pm
Unless we know the real roots of the problem, we cannot uproot it. Armed forces are in the best position to unearth and kill the monster.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:34pm
Very nice words but instead of blaming, solutions need to be presented. Religious divide is greatly in the making by previous dictatorships and governments. Government asks on every forms, applications and passports a person sect, religion. Madarsahs promote one sect over the others. Whole culture is based on differences and intolerances whereas Pakistanis have more in common. It is the leaders responsibilities to look at the laws of the land, look at the curriculums and books in schools, recommend changes and promote peace and harmony. Peace within can not be achieved without peace on the borders. No other country has problem with its neighbors on all sides. Armed forces and civilian government has to work together and military should be protecting the borders and civilian police should be maintaining law & order internally.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:39pm
If there is no discrimination then why are victims of bhawalpur given 2m per death and parachinar 200,000 per deceased? Not that any amount of money can compensate for this loss!
Why were the residents of parachinar fired at by the army when they protested?
Lastly ISPR is good at only making statements after the event and releasing movies like Yalghaar!
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Jun 28, 2017 07:41pm
Please control these ethnicity issues and religious extremism at very first to let Pakistan economy grow to stand firm against our real enemy india. these religious leaders would never allow the country to be prosper. they mostly playing bullies against each other and this is the greater enemy among us WE HAVE TO UNITE AGAINST IT TO SURVIVE AND FACE OTHERS
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Jun 28, 2017 07:46pm
Terrorism will stop only if you seal and close the border with Afghanistan.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:47pm
Dear Gen. Bajwa, evil engulfs faster than one can imagine. Please do something to stop this terrorism against residents of Parachinar.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:50pm
Very good statement. General public also has some responsibility to reduce and stop this wave of killing by enemy criminals. It is patriotic duty of citizens to report about those persons involved in criminal activities, so that law enforcement personnel can investigate them. Enemies and their agents want to create chaos and destroy Pakistan from within. General public must be on look out for enemy and report it. Please make Pakistan a better country for yourself, your children and future generations. thank you.
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Jun 28, 2017 07:58pm
Long live general bajawa...
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Jun 28, 2017 08:13pm
Not just words, actions speaks louder!!! It is ethnic and sectarian no matter how ISPR would like to narrate it to the public.
Pakistan army, government and political parties are displaying clear signs of segregation and partisan in Parachinar like matters; especially where minority rights and life are severely effected.
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Jun 28, 2017 08:14pm
@Zulfiqar Ali Naqvi Well said.... But it is true for everyone including you and me as well.... isn't it? ... I would like you to set a benchmark for your satisfaction.... not an ideal one but a realistic one..... How would you like to defend people in Parachinar?... You can give example of any area or territory in the world?.... Lastly, I hope you know where Parachinar is? And what's it's geography?
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Jun 28, 2017 08:16pm
What happened in Parachinar ?
Terrorism or Sectarianism ?
It was sectarian attack (Sectarian Terrorism). By saying it was terrorist attack, one cannot wish away the stark reality that there are strong sectarian divisions within the country. By pointing finger at the so-called 'enemy', we cannot absolve ourselves of our responsibility to face these elements who may be from within the country and our own negatively motivated countrymen.
Whatever, it was great tragedy. Steps must be taken to stop such tragedies in future.
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Jun 28, 2017 08:30pm
Well stated. Nomatter physically we r not there but our hearts are with all the greived faimlies
Shame on dollar and rial paid media&the responsibles of these incidents.
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Jun 28, 2017 08:42pm
Actions speak louder then words
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Jun 28, 2017 08:46pm
So after decades of trying to light fires in its neighborhood, Pakistan blames the neighborhood now that its own house has caught fire. My question is, do informed Pakistanis even realize this, or have they been so conditioned over their lifetimes that they have lost the ability to observe and analyse?
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Jun 28, 2017 08:48pm
Why does the army chief or ISPR or the establishment as it is called in disguise has to give some statement every day. Is Pakistan a democracy or not? On international forums Pakistan is very proud to say it is a democracy. Does it just say that to please the world avoid sanctions and keep begging for aid. So the army lets the government keep a façade of democracy so it keeps getting money?
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Jun 28, 2017 08:50pm
Gen. Bajwa statement is encouraging and positive. Let Government, federal and provincial not undertake actions causing disproportionate disbursement of funds to injured/dead. The uniform policy action ought be firm and prompt. Think for a second oil tanker victims, negligent and greedy get compensated crores per dead whereas Parachinar victims get nothing so far who happened to be law abiding citizens. Thats why Parachinar wants to see Gen. Bajwa as he seems to be fair, equitable and above politics.
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Jun 28, 2017 09:01pm
The wishes of this general can be fulfilled only through proper education of the masses during school days. But it is sad that one of his predecessors, Gen. Zia, has denied them the opportunity by radicalizing the education system. So nothing is going to change as long as this radical education continues to thrive in Pakistan.
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Jun 28, 2017 09:12pm
And media is party to that.
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Jun 28, 2017 09:14pm
Shame on government and law enforcement agencies
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Jun 28, 2017 09:21pm
if a particular community has been targeted from Quetta, Karachi, Gilgit to Parachinar after being identified then the sectarian colour to it is inevitable, despite they have long been restrained and limited to peaceful protest. But there has been no decilne in secterian terrorism owing to utter failure of LFEs.
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Jun 28, 2017 09:21pm
We fully back the army’s statement. What has been stated must be followed through by action to foil the enemy's plans. As some great leader (I can't recollect his name) said, in a time of crisis in his country's history: "We must all hang together, or we will hang separately."
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Jun 28, 2017 09:31pm
@zulfiqar Ali naqvi
These are testing/hard times for us...
Time to think what have we contributed to this cause as an individual
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Jun 28, 2017 09:52pm
We are our own enemy. Let us not keep blaming others for our faults.
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Jun 28, 2017 10:06pm
actions General actions are whats required. We know whats going on, stop stating the obvious.
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Jun 28, 2017 10:34pm
I am not sure what does he mean by " giving" a sectarian color. There is a sectarian motivation for these events as long as they have been going on. Statement like these do not do justice to the pain of victims families.
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Jun 28, 2017 10:44pm
You need to be more Active than Raheel Sharif was,
Today Public Administration becomes a VERY COMPLEX JOB
Just an Info Warfare is enough to Defame a Country,And Country is Surrounded by Different types of Wars,
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Jun 28, 2017 10:46pm
The Pakistan Army has called for a unified response to what it said was a "malicious" campaign by hostile intelligence agencies and anti-state elements to give a sectarian and ethnic colour to a recent string of terrorist incidents in the country that mainly targeted minority Shias."
So it is outside Pakistan Sunnis who are targeting Shias in Pakistan..
General ,I am sure you to are not convinced with this statement of yours.
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Jun 28, 2017 11:05pm
We Shia all duly believe the latest statesman Gen. Bajwa for decrying those external elements and intelligence agencies who keep going on killing sprees against our community. We also do not to believe the vehement credit being sought by militant Islamic State group and the Jamaatul Ahrar for this violence, after all they ought to be, perhaps, paid by the same agencies. JA and IS in fact love us, while those nefarious foreign agencies hate us.
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Jun 28, 2017 11:33pm
The state and its vital organs are giving ample opportunity to enemy agencies to exploit peoples sentiments by their double standard policies.
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Jun 28, 2017 11:59pm
Meeting with the head of religious figure was a good gesture. Telling them about the enemy tactics will bring harmony among the religious sects.
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Jun 29, 2017 12:53am
Indeed,there is no sectarian divide behind these terrorism related incidents.Rather it is being painted as such by the external enemy's intelligence agencies, with the aim to create a rift between them and destabilize the country !
All through history and presently, Western empires have divided people against each other, blamed the resulting conflict on the people themselves, and thus justified their control over both the people, and the region they occupy.Western imperial ambitions were met through creating ethnic rivalries.Extending financial, technical, and military aid and training to various factions.
The agenda possibly for Pakistan,maybe similar to that applied throughout the broader Middle East Central Asian region. The strategy, supported by covert intelligence operations, consists in triggering ethnic and religious strife, abetting and financing secessionist movements while also weakening the institutions of the central government.
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Jun 29, 2017 01:00am
"For us every shaheed [martyred]/injured is equal, regardless of sect/ethnicity and indeed is a great loss," . "We all are Pakistanis and Muslims who fully respect the religious rights of our Pakistani minorities." Such beautiful words. Thank you General Bajwa. We Salute our Armed forces.
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Jun 29, 2017 01:17am
The enemy is from within, not external. When will this be acknowledged.
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Jun 29, 2017 01:33am
Lashkar-i-Jhangvi al-Alami other mentality brainwashed people needs to be rooted out of Pakistan there no Hindu/Muslim/Christian/Sikh/Parsi etc., we are all humans and Lashkar and like minded hate groups or any faith or sects things will get harder and harder for you as we understand very well we are all human and your brain washing needs to be stop! Elimination of such group by force/cutting their funding is the only way.
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Jun 29, 2017 02:05am
There is no point in just pointing fingers at others. Question is why do we have our intelligence agency and spend billions on them? What lessons we learn from incidents and put measures in place? Every time we blame others and wash our hands and wait for next such incident to happen. Look at our own home and put it in order. Change state policies and move away from religion.
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Jun 29, 2017 02:13am
Yes sir and silly media and politicians r one of them
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Jun 29, 2017 02:26am
Foreign enemies will be defeated.
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Jun 29, 2017 04:35am
Great Soldier. Very professional, highly educated and loves his motherland. I only wish these qualities are in politicians also, hope judiciary does justice to get rid of corrupt politicians and like minded people ban them for life and set strict laws and it's enforcement, so law never differentiate between between it's citizens, you do the crime and you get punishment.
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Jun 29, 2017 07:16am
The nation has no doubt what you are saying. What about the CEO of Pakistan (The PM). Does he also thinks that way. I don't think so. On Parachinar blast only a statement came from PM's house. He has still not visited Parachinar in KPK to pay condolence to the families whose loved ones killed in the blast. He did't bother to visit Charsadda University till today.
IDPs from Waziristan are still waiting to go home due lack of funds. Where as billions are being spent at Metro/green line in Punjab. There is no PM of Pakistan. That position is vacant. There is PM Punjab and Deputy PM Punjab.
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Jun 29, 2017 07:49am
Not Hostile elements....laws hostile to minorities are the main reason
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Jun 29, 2017 10:00am
It was without any doubt sectarian terrorism.
Let us not brush the truth under the carpet.
Face the reality and act.
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Jun 29, 2017 10:56am
We are with our Army.
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