Sunni Militant Group Claims Responsibility
Islamabad: In a sign of growing fratricidal conflict in Pakistan, at least 18 Shias pilgrims were forced to disembark from a bus and gunned down by extremists as they travelled from Rawalpindi to Gilgit in northern Pakistan on Tuesday. Jundullah, an outlawed Sunni militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack.
“All 39 passengers on board were Shias, and at the moment it looks like they were targeted by gunmen from local sunni community,” said police chief in Kohistan district, Mohammad Ilyas. Pakistan has the second largest Shia population after Iran: approximately 50 million.
Extremist Sunni militant groups often target religious minorities, especially Shias, in Pakistan. The bus was carrying 39 Shia passengers from Rawalpindi to the northern town of Gilgit and came under attack on the Karakoram Highway in Kohistan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Kohistan has significant strategic importance for Pakistan’s military as all supplies to Siachen pass through it via the Karakoram highway. The district also borders the Swat valley, which had significant Taliban presence.
Most victims were pilgrims returning to their native areas after visiting their holy shrines in Iran. “The assailants, dressed in army fatigues, made the passengers disembark from the bus and shot them one by one after checking their national identity cards and identifying them as Shias,” said a police officer. Seven armed men hiding on both sides of the road attacked the bus, he added.
President Asif Ali Zardari and prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani condemned the killings and vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice.
Attacks on Shias in recent years shows that sectarian violence remains as deadly as killings instigated by al-Qaida and the Taliban.
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