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| India-Pakistan |
| Anti-Shia pamphlets distributed in Quetta before massacre |
| 2003-07-12 |
| Sipah-e-Sahaba distributed anti-Shia pamphlets in Deobandi and Sunni mosques in Quetta before 'foreign hands' attacked a Shia mosque killing 50 worshipers. The pamphlet includes fatwas of members of Pakistan's national assembly and senate. The pamphlet was recovered from a Wahabi religious school "Madressa Darul Uloom Imdadia, Mariabad" which was burnt down by angry Shia protesters after the mosque attack, Quetta residents told Shia News. "Nearly 200 students were studying at the Madressa but almost all of them were gone two nights before the Friday attack, and it makes clear that they were informed about the attack," Mr. R. Karim, a resident of Quetta said. Wahabi terorists attacked Nasirul Aza Imambargah and mosque on 4 July during Friday prayers. Fifty-three people including three terrorists were killed in the suicide attack. More than sixty-five others were injured. The three men had wheeled a trolley up to the gate of the mosque before pulling guns from under a cover and opening fire on worshippers, police said. All three had grenades strapped to their waists, and two managed to blow themselves up. A third, who did not, died of wounds sustained when guards opened fire. The Pakistan government parroted its stance of blaming "foreign hands" for the attack. "The names of the MNA's and senators in the pamphlet prove that Pakistan government is avoiding the real problem by suggesting foreign involvement in the attacks," Mr. Sabir Nizami, a Sunni Muslim of Quetta told Shia News. "The Deobandis hate Shia and Sunnis. They want to kills us all. I hope they all die. The government will never help us," Mr. Nizami said. President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Zafarullah Jamali have both spoken of a foreign involvement. On Monday, foreign ministry spokesman Mahmood Khan hinted India may have played a part in the attack in an attempt to destabilize Musharraf's government. A top police investigator, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP news agency on Wednesday that five members of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi have been separated from a group of thirty Wahabis detained earlier for questioning in connection with the attack. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |