More than 2,000 Shiites marched here yesterday under tight police security to condemn last week's mosque killings in southwest Pakistan, while hundreds others also staged protest rallies in major cities across the country. Members of six-party Muttahida Majlis Amal (MMA) religious alliance joined the procession taken out in the capital from a central Shia mosque.
| Bet that made them feel secure... |
Speakers at the countrywide rallies blamed the government for failing to protect the Shia community against attacks by extremists and terrorists. They demanded the arrest of culprits behind the June 4 mosque attack that killed 48 people in Quetta. In addition to Islamabad, rallies were held in Lahore, Multan, Peshawar and Quetta. Three terrorists, two of them suicide bombers, raided the mosque of the ethnic Hazara tribe in Quetta last Friday. The attack, one of the worst in Pakistan's history, also left more than 50 people injured. Armed police have been guarding mosques across the country as part of enhanced security after the Quetta carnage.
| That's 'cuz Shiites aren't really Muslims, y'see? And that makes them infidesls, so they're fair game... |
"President Musharraf is the only reason for all of Pakistan's problems," said leaders of the MMA at a press conference in Lahore to mark the 'black day'.
| "Yeah! He prob'ly dunnit hisself!" |
The MMA leaders said Musharraf would have to change his attitude otherwise he would be responsible for Pakistan's failure. MMA leaders, including Liaqat Baloch, Ali Sabtain Kazmi, Pir Ijaz Hashmi and Fareed Ahmad Paracha afddressed rallies in Lahore to condemn government policy, which they said "allowed the Quetta massacre to occur".
| What allowed the Quetta massacre to occur was letting fundos run rampant throughout Pakistan... |
Claiming the Quetta incident was a conspiracy, they said improving relations between India and Israel could have played a part in the massacre, adding that this was the opinion of all opposition parties.
| By, golly! That must be it! It couldn't possibly have been bloodthirsty turbans... |
Baloch said the opposition parties accepted the government's invitation to dialogue, but if the dialogues would end with no result, the opposition would rally public support. Some 1,000 MMA supporters led a rally in Multan district of Punjab province. "The government must unveil the facts behind this conspiracy against the people," Multan chief of MMA Mufti Hidayatullah Pasroori said, addressing protesters. |