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| India-Pakistan |
| 'Pakistan police assisting Shia killings' |
| 2009-03-20 |
| Shia Muslims have accused Pakistani security forces of collaborating with pro-Taliban militants after the police raided a Shia memorial service. On Wednesday, security forces Shia mourners who had gathered in the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan to mark the February deadly bombings, local media reports said. At least 30 people were killed and 65 others were injured after a bomb ripped through a Shia Muslim leader's funeral procession on February 20. Moreover, in early February, at least 35 Shias were killed and 50 others were injured after a bomb exploded in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan in the central Punjab province. In the latest incident, a Shia teacher was killed in Dera Ismail Khan while on his way to school on Wednesday. In most cases of sectarian violence, the terrorists flee the crime scene and the security forces instead arrest the mourners who gather to mark funeral ceremony and remembrance services for the deceased, local residences say. They claim that security forces - especially in the tribal regions - are 'under the influence of local Taliban groups', adding that law enforcement officers have 'willingly or unwillingly' launched a clamp down on Shia Muslims. This is while the extremists groups have embarked on an 'ominous mission' to 'eliminate' Shia elites across Pakistan - which became a safe haven for pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. They have killed hundreds of Shia medical doctors, university professors, lawyers and police officers across the violence-wracked country during the past few years. Local Pakistani media say Taliban-linked militants in Parachinar, Hangu district and much of the Kurram tribal agency have killed 25 to 30 people on a daily basis over the last six months. The killing of Shias is to such extent that has caused international outrage with rights groups and regional countries including Iran expressing concern over the 'genocide'. Moderate Pakistani Sunni groups believe that leaving Shias at the mercy of the Taliban is a conspiracy against the country. Some reports have cited grave human rights abuses against Shias in the northwestern Pakistani city of Parachinar. Shias say they make up one-third of Pakistan's 160 million-strong population. Since the 1980s, thousands of people have been killed in violence-related incidents in Pakistan by extremist groups. |
| Posted by:Fred |