KARACHI, Feb 19: The Sindh Bar Council and the Sindh High Court Bar Association have strongly condemned the suicide bomb attack in a Quetta civil court.

Condoling the deaths of a senior civil judge, seven lawyers and seven others in the attack, the council and the association said the bombing was intended to inflict greater damage than caused by it. It indicated that terrorists had targeted an institution that is the backbone of the constitutional machinery. The attack was aimed at impairing the public confidence in the judicial settlement of their disputes.

The lawyers’ organisations urged the government to take the attack as a warning, and adopt adequate security measures to accord due protection to the judiciary. They said the amount of compensation for the victims should be enhanced and the culprits brought to book.