Shi'ites protest in Quetta after deadly bombing
- 11 years ago
(ROUGH CUT ONLY - NO REPORTER NARRATION)
Thousands of Pakistani Shi'ite Muslims continued to protest in Quetta on Monday (February 18) near the bodies of those killed in a sectarian attack on Saturday (February 16).
The attack, near a street market in the south-western city of Quetta, highlighted the government's failure to crack down on militancy in nuclear-armed Pakistan just a few months before a general election is due.
The death toll climbed to 89 on Monday, said provincial health secretary Nasibullah Bazai.
Protests were held across all major cities in Pakistan.
While the Taliban and al Qaeda remain a major source of instability, Sunni extremists, who regard Shi'ites as non-Muslims, have emerged as another significant security threat.
In Quetta, some ethnic Shi'ite Hazaras are refusing to bury their dead until the army and security forces go after Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), the group which claimed responsibility for the latest bombing.
Around 4,000 men, women and children placed 71 bodies beside a Shi'ite place of worship. Muslim tradition requires that bodies are buried be soon as possible and leaving them above ground is a potent expression of grief and pain.
Thousands of Pakistani Shi'ite Muslims continued to protest in Quetta on Monday (February 18) near the bodies of those killed in a sectarian attack on Saturday (February 16).
The attack, near a street market in the south-western city of Quetta, highlighted the government's failure to crack down on militancy in nuclear-armed Pakistan just a few months before a general election is due.
The death toll climbed to 89 on Monday, said provincial health secretary Nasibullah Bazai.
Protests were held across all major cities in Pakistan.
While the Taliban and al Qaeda remain a major source of instability, Sunni extremists, who regard Shi'ites as non-Muslims, have emerged as another significant security threat.
In Quetta, some ethnic Shi'ite Hazaras are refusing to bury their dead until the army and security forces go after Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), the group which claimed responsibility for the latest bombing.
Around 4,000 men, women and children placed 71 bodies beside a Shi'ite place of worship. Muslim tradition requires that bodies are buried be soon as possible and leaving them above ground is a potent expression of grief and pain.