A boy, in Brussels, Belgium, holding placard against the Persecution of Hazaras.

The persecution of Hazaras in Quetta, is a series of ethnic or religious motivated attacks on Hazaras in Quetta, Pakistan.[1][2][3] Terrorist organisations like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi or Lashkar-e-Taiba have often accepted responsibility for conducting attacks on Hazaras in Pakistan.

Hazaras have been living in Afghanistan before partition since 1880s. Almost all migrated due to persecution by Abdur Rahman Khan and a good part in the 1990s due to ethnic cleansing by the Afghan Taliban. The Hazaras are easily identifiable because of their facial features.[4]

Perpetrators

Acts of violence involving Sunni Muslims and their Shia counterparts in Pakistan have been evident since the 1980s. They are generally considered to have arisen from attempts by the then national leader, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, to legitimise his military dictatorship and from the influx of weapons into the country following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Although the perpetrators often do not claim responsibility for the attacks, expert analysis suggests that in recent times it is the Sunnis who are dominating the aggression and that they are motivated by the ideology of Al-Qaeda.[5]

Quetta, which is the capital of the Pakistani province of Balochistan, has seen numerous of these violent incidents. This is in part because of a separatist movement involving militants from the ethnic minority who desire greater autonomy and also because the Pakistani military is engaged in counter-insurgency operations near to the province's border with Afghanistan, where there is tribal strife that involves the Taliban and allied groups.[6]

It is widely assumed that the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Sunni Muslim extremist militant group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and Sipah-e-Sahaba, is behind the attacks on the Hazara community in the region.[7][8] There are differences of opinion regarding whether LeJ is a breakaway group of a banned former political party, Sipah-e-Sahaba, or simply its armed wing.[5] The LeJ openly issues death threats to Hazaras through newspaper ads and describes them as wajib-ul-qatl (deserving of death).[4] Lashkar-e-Jhangvi operates from sanctuaries in Afghanistan.[9][10]

Hazaras in Pakistan face isolation due to their ethnic and religious background, enduring daily targeted assassinations and suicide bombings orchestrated by terrorist networks. This tragic situation has unfortunately gone unnoticed by the United Nations, human rights organizations, and the international community, highlighting the dire plight of the Hazara community in Quetta, Pakistan.[11][12]

Response

Various advocacy groups, such as the Hazara People International Network, have been formed to publicise the situation and promote opposition to it.[13] The Hazara diaspora in Australia, Western Europe and North America have also joined these protests from time to time.[14] Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq, the political leader of the Hazara in Afghanistan, has also expressed solidarity with the Hazara community in Quetta.[15][16]

The persecution carried out against the Hazara have been documented by the United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Asian Human Rights Commission, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.[17][18][19][20][21][22]

Former Balochistan chief minister Aslam Raisani was asked to resign by protesters after Mastung Massacre.[23] Mahmood Khan Achakzai, and Sardar Akhtar Mengal condemned the killings and demanded that the Pakistani security establishment take stern action against those involved in terrorism and acts of violence against civilians.

Hazaras have also asked the government to deploy soldiers in Quetta to provide them protection from the attacks.[24] Many Hazaras demanded that Pakistan army should take control of the province.[25]

In response, many members and leaders of Lashkar-e Jhangvi (LeJ) have been killed in military operations conducted by the army and the police.[26][27][28][29][30]

Timeline of attacks

2001

February 9:

Eight passenger were shot dead and five severely wounded when they were traveling in a van en route from Hazara Town to Alamdar road. Later, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the attack.[31][32]

2003

June 8:

Twelve Young Hazara police cadets were killed when two assailants opened fire on their vehicle. The attack occurred on Saryab Road and left nine others injured.[33]

July 4:

Fifty five people were killed and over 150 were injured in an attack on worshipers during Friday Prayers on Mekongi road Quetta.[34]

2004

March 2:

At least 60 people were killed and more than 100 critically injured when a religious procession of the Shia Muslims was attacked with extensive open-firing which followed an explosion by rival Sunni extremists at Liaquat Bazaar in Quetta on Tenth of Muharram. Lashkar-e Jhangvi claimed the responsibility.[35][36][37]

2007

January 10: Agha Ghulam Ali, aged 25, owner of the famous fruit juice outlet in Pakistan. His father Agha Abbas had also been murdered by the same Sunni Muslim terrorist organization in May 2002.[38]

2010

September 3:

At least 73 people were killed and 206 injured when a bomb exploded during a rally.[39]

April 16:

On April 16, 2010, a suicide bomber killed 12 people and injured 47, including MNA Syed Nasir Ali Shah, his son, his guards,a journalist and two police officials, in an attack on Quetta’s Civil Hospital. The attack took place after the body of Ashraf Zaidi, a Shia bank manager, shot dead earlier in the day by extremists, was brought to the hospital. The attackers evidently targeted the hospital knowing that members of the Shia community and their elected MNA would be gathering at the hospital in the aftermath of Zaidi’s killing. LeJ claimed responsibility for the attack.[40]

2011

May 6:

Eight died and fifteen were wounded in the early morning when armed men fired rockets at Hazara people playing outside in an open field. Children were also among the victims.[41]

June 16:

Abrar Hussain, the Pakistani Olympian boxer and Chairman Balochistan Sports Board, was assassinated near Ayub National Stadium in Quetta.[42][43]

August 31:

Thirteen died and twenty-two were wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up in the morning of Eid near Hazara Eid Gah. Four women and two children were also among the dead.[44]

September 20:

A bus carrying pilgrims to Taftan was stopped in Mastung near Quetta, after identifying Hazara passengers they were massacred leaving 26 dead. Three more were shot dead when they were on their way to collect the bodies.[45]

September 23:

Five more Hazara were casualties in an attack when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a van.[46]

2012

January 26:

Three Hazara men were shot dead in Quetta. Two of the victims were public servants and the third one Abid Ali Nazish, was a television artist.[47]

March 29:

A taxi carrying passengers from Hazara Town was sprayed with bullets, which killed seven and injured six.[48][49] Three women and some children were also among the casualties. This was the third attack on the community in just one week.[50] Two boys under 16 were shot dead by the police as they tried to disperse angry protesters blocking traffic, raising the death toll to nine.[50]

April 3:

Two Hazara men were shot dead in Mekongi road, Quetta, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) claimed responsibility for the attack.[51]

April 9:

Six men were killed by unidentified gunmen on Prince road.[52]

April 12:

Three businessmen, one Tea trader and two Ice cream parlour owners, were gunned down in the busiest bazaars of the city, in two separate incidents.[53]

April 14:

Eight Hazara men were killed on their way to work when armed assailants opened fire on a taxi carrying them on Brewery road.[54]

April 21:

Two brothers were shot dead on Brewery road near SBKW University adjacent to Hazara Town, Quetta. The paramilitary Frontier Corps later arrested three suspects with the help of locals.[55][56]

May 15:

Two brothers were killed when unidentified gunmen opened fire on them while they were standing in the line outside Passport issuing office on Joint road, Quetta.[57]

June 28:

15 people were killed and 45 others injured, when a suicide attack occurred on a bus in Quetta which had just returned from Iran carrying 60 pilgrims including scores of women and children belonging to the Hazara community.[58] Among the dead were four women and two children.

November 6:

"Assailants on a motorcycle opened fire on a yellow taxi cab on Spinny Road": 3 Hazaras killed, 2 injured.[59]

2013

10th Jan 2013:

Several bombings took place in the southwestern Pakistani in the city of Quetta, where four separate explosions a few minutes apart in the evening ripped through a snooker hall Alamdar Road in a neighborhood dominated by ethnic Hazara Shiites, killing at least 115 people in total and wounding more than 270.[60] The first explosion happened inside the hall, and a vehicle was blown outside the club by one of the attackers on the arrival of police officers and journalists. The second explosion killed five police officers along with one cameraman. Due to the overabundance of casualties, the hospitals were overwhelmed. It was, according to one Hazara leader, the worst attack in Quetta in 14 years. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a sunni terrorist organization, has claimed the responsibility of these attacks.[61][62]

16th Feb 2013:

A big bomb blast at Kirani Road near Hazara Town of Quetta killed 73 and wounded at least 180 people from Shia community. The deadly bombing comes after 36 days of Governor Rule in Balochistan that was imposed following Alamdar Road's twin bombings on Jan 10 in Quettawhich had claimed more than 100 lives of Hazara people.[63] attacks. Banned sunni terrorist outfit Lashkar Jhangvi (LJ) claimed responsibility for the bombing.[63]

30 June 2013:

At least 33 Hazaras were killed (including 9 women and 4 children) and over 70 seriously injured (15 in critical condition) when Al-Qaeda affiliated terrorists carried a suicide attack and exploded an improvised explosive device in a crowded area in Ali Abad, Hazara Town area. The attacks were meters away from Abu Talib mosque near Blakhi chowk (4-way) in Ali Abad. The attack, once again, has happened despite the fact that the entire area is cordoned off by security agencies and every person entering the area is checked. Al-Qaeda affiliated Lashkar-e Jhangvi (LEJ) terrorists called NNI and claimed responsibility for the Attack.

2014 and after

See also

References

  1. ↑ "International commission demanded to probe Hazara killings". Samaa News. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Insight: A brief history of Hazara persecution". The Friday Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  3. ↑ Ghani, Amel (1 March 2019). "Culture of Fear : A wave of targeted attacks isolates Quetta's Hazaras". The Caravan. Retrieved 2019-12-07.
  4. 1 2 Zakaria, Rafia (11 Apr 2012). "Saving the Hazara". Dawn. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  5. 1 2 Lawson, Alastair (4 October 2011). "Pakistan's evolving sectarian schism". BBC. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  6. ↑ "Taliban bomber kills Pakistan Shia marchers". BBC. 22 November 2012. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  7. ↑ B. Raman (26 September 2011). "Pakistan: Another Massacre of Hazaras in Balochistan By Pro Al Qaeda Elements". Eurasia Review. Retrieved 2012-11-14.
  8. ↑ "LeJ blamed for killing Hazaras in Quetta". Central Asia Online. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  9. ↑ "Pakistani Extremists Carve A Sanctuary In Southern Afghanistan". RFERL. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  10. ↑ "Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Al-Alami group chief survives insider attack in Afghanistan". Khaama Press. Retrieved 25 December 2016.
  11. ↑ "Ethnic Cleansing of Hazaras in Pakistan". www.hazara.net. Retrieved 2023-10-05.
  12. ↑ Akhter, Asad Hashim,Saadullah. "Pakistani Hazara families refuse to bury dead after attack". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-10-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ↑ "Hazara People International Network | Hazara People Everywhere in this World!". Hazarapeople.com. Retrieved 2013-01-16.
  14. ↑ "World Wide Protest Against Genocide in Pakistan and Afghanistan - Kabul Press | Afghanistan Press | کابل پرس | افغانستان پرس". Kabul Press. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  15. ↑ "Speech of Ustad Haji Mohaqiq | Against the targeted Killings and genocides of Hazaras in Pakistan". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  16. ↑ "There can be no peace without peace in Afghanistan: Gilani". Dawn.com. APP. 2011-10-21. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  17. ↑ "Pakistan: Authorities must tackle brazen attacks on Hazara Shi'a" (Press release). Amnesty International. 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  18. ↑ Retrieved 2.4.2012 Archived February 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  19. ↑ Adams, Brad (2011-12-03). "Pakistan: Protect Shia Muslims". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  20. ↑ "Retrieved 2.4.2012". Dailytimes.com.pk. 2012-02-09. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  21. ↑ "Accessed 2.4.2012". Hrcp-web.org. 2011-10-05. Archived from the original on 2012-02-06. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  22. ↑ "Accessed 2.4.2012". Rawa.org. 1998-11-01. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  23. ↑ "Mastung martyrs laid to rest in Quetta". The Nation. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  24. ↑ "Hazaras stage sit-in, look to army as toll reaches 118". The News. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  25. ↑ "Desperate Hazaras want army rule in Quetta". Dawn News. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  26. ↑ "Pakistani forces kill five Lashkar-e-Jhangvi militants: Officials". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  27. ↑ "Two suicide bombers belonging to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi killed in operation". Daily times. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  28. ↑ "Over 860 Terrorists, Criminals Killed by Pakistan Security Forces in Karachi Operations". NDTV. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  29. ↑ "Pakistan's Army Kills Commander Of Islamist Militant Group In Balochistan". RFERL. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  30. ↑ "New LeJ leader killed in encounter with Punjab CTD". Express Tribune. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  31. ↑ Akbar, Malik Siraj (6 February 2009). "Hazaras under attack in Quetta". Gmcmissing.wordpress.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  32. ↑ Dawn.com (11 January 2013). "Timeline: Hazara killings in Balochistan". Dawn.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  33. ↑ "Police massacre in Pakistan". BBC News. June 8, 2003. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
  34. ↑ Khan, Azizullah. "47 killed in Quetta mosque attack". Daily Times. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
  35. ↑ "Report: Where do we go? by Ali K Chishti". Thefridaytimes.com. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
  36. ↑ "QUETTA: 50 Shias Killed 140 injured in suicide attacks on religious procession". Geocities.ws. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
  37. ↑ "South Asia | Carnage in Pakistan Shia attack". BBC News. 2004-03-02. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
  38. ↑ "KARACHI: Three shot dead -DAWN - Local; May 26, 2002". Dawn News Archives. 2002-05-26. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
  39. ↑ "Death toll from Pakistan suicide bombing rises to 73". CNN. 4 September 2010. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  40. ↑ "Bomber blows himself up inside Quetta hospital; 11 killed - DAWN.COM". 17 April 2010.
  41. ↑ "Eight die as militants open fire in Pakistan park (Lead) - Thaindian News". Thaindian.com. 2011-05-06. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  42. ↑ Social Post (2011-06-17). "Pakistan: Olympic boxer Abrar Hussain shot dead | International - Oneindia News". News.oneindia.in. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  43. ↑ Baloch, Shehzad. "Another hero lost: Boxing Olympian shot dead in Quetta". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  44. ↑ "13 killed in Quetta suicide blast on Eid day". Thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  45. ↑ Baloch, Shehzad (20 September 2011). "Sectarian atrocity: 29 killed in Mastung, Quetta ambushes". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  46. ↑ "Sectarian attack: 3 killed, 2 injured in Quetta". Express Tribune. 23 September 2011. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  47. ↑ "Three Hazara men shot dead in Quetta". Dawn.com. 2012-01-26. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  48. ↑ "Seven Shias, two UN staffers killed in Balochistan". Pakistan Today. 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  49. ↑ "Six Hazaras gunned down in Quetta". Thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  50. 1 2 Baloch, Shehzad (2012-03-27). "Two members of Hazara community injured in Dasht". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  51. ↑ "Two more Hazara Shias killed in Quetta". Pakistan Today. 2012-04-03. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  52. ↑ "Six members of Hazara community killed in Quetta firing incident". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  53. ↑ Baloch, Shehzad (2012-04-13). "Sectarian attacks: Three Hazaras slain in Quetta attacks". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  54. ↑ Baloch, Shehzad (14 April 2012). "Target killings: Seven Hazaras, one police official killed in Quetta". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-05-03.
  55. ↑ "Sectarian violence: 2 Hazaras killed in Quetta, FC arrests 3 suspects". The Express Tribune. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
  56. ↑ Nasir, Javeria (2012-04-21). "Two killed in Quetta firing". AAJ News. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
  57. ↑ "2 Hazaras killed, 1 injured in Quetta attack". The Express Tribune. 2012-05-12. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
  58. ↑ "'Suicide' blast: 14 killed in attack on Hazara pilgrims". Tribune.com.pk. 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  59. ↑ Zafar, Mohammad. "Sectarian strife:Three Hazaras killed in Quetta". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
  60. ↑ DECLAN WALSH (10 January 2013). "Blasts in Pakistan Kill Scores and Stir Fears on Elections". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  61. ↑ "Sunni extremist group claims Quetta bombing - Central & South Asia". Al Jazeera English. 2011-10-04. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  62. ↑ "Death toll of twin blasts in Quetta, Pakistan rises to 82 - Xinhua | English.news.cn". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  63. 1 2 "Another Hazara massacre in Quetta". The Nation. Archived from the original on 2013-06-01. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
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