| February 2013 Quetta bombing | |
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| Location | Hazara Town,Quetta,Balochistan,Pakistan |
| Coordinates | 30°22′N67°01′E / 30.36°N 67.02°E /30.36; 67.02 |
| Date | 16 February 2013 (2013-02-16) |
Attack type | Bombing |
| Deaths | 91 |
| Injured | 190 |
| Perpetrator | Lashkar-e-Jhangvi |
On 16 February 2013, at least 91 people were killed and 190 injured after a bomb hidden in a water tankexploded at a market inHazara Town on the outskirts ofQuetta, the capital city ofBalochistan,Pakistan.[1] Most of the victims were members of the predominantlyShiaTwelver ethnicHazara community, and authorities expected the death toll to rise due to the large number of serious injuries. TheLashkar-e-Jhangvi group claimed responsibility for the blast, the second major attack against the Shia Hazarasin a month.[2][3][4][5][6]
On 19 February, one of the masterminds of the attack was arrested and taken into custody along with 170 suspects, and four high-profilemilitants accused of killingShiacivilians were killed during an operation by security forces. Weapons,ammunition and bomb-making materials were seized by security officials during the operation.[7]
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Acts of violence involvingSunni Muslims and theirShia counterparts in Pakistan have been evident since the 1980s. They are generally considered to have arisen from attempts by the then national leader,Zia ul-Haq, to legitimise hismilitary dictatorship and from the influx of weapons into the country following theSoviet 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 ofal-Qaeda.[8] The number of violent incidents has been increasing in recent years, although not all of them are classified by the police as beingsectarian attacks.[9]
Quetta, which is the capital of thePakistani province of Balochistan, has sufferedmany of these violent incidents. This is in part because of aseparatist movement involving militants from theBalochistan Liberation Army who demand greaterautonomy and also because thePakistani military is engaged incounter-insurgencyoperations near to the province'sborder withAfghanistan, where there is tribal strife that involves theTaliban and allied groups.[9]
Similarly, theJanuary 2013 bombings in Quetta killed 130 people and caused widespread anger, leading to thedismissal of theprovincial government.[citation needed]
The bomb went off in a market area with many grocery stores, severallanguage schools and a large computer centre. It took place towards the end of the market day, as many people shopped for food and children left school. According to Quetta's police chief Mir Zubai Mehmood, around 70–80 kg of explosives had been planted inside a water tank that had been installed on atractor trailer.[10]
Initial reports suggested the bomb had been attached to a parked motorbike. The blast dealt severe damage to buildings in the area, destroying at least one two-story house and trapping many under rubble. Sporadic gunfire was reported after the attack, and locals were reportedly hesitant to approach the site in the immediate aftermath for fear of more bombs. Angry members of theHazara minority set uproadblocks withburning tires and fired into the air in order to keep people away from the blast site in case of a second attack. Photos from the scene showed groups of desperate people rushing the injured into ambulances and private vehicles, asemergency services quickly became overloaded.[11] Nevertheless, police forces worked throughout the evening and into the night, with the death toll being updated several times due to more bodies being pulled out from beneath rubble.[12]
It is expected that the al-Qaeda-affiliated Sunni Muslimextremist group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), was behind the attacks on the Hazara minority in the region.[13][14] There are differences of opinion regarding whether LeJ is a breakaway group of a banned former political party,Sipah-e-Sahaba, or is its armed wing.[8] The LeJ openly issues death threats to Hazaras through newspaper ads and describes them aswajib-ul-qatl (deserving of death).[15]
Immediately after the attack,Pakistani PresidentAsif Ali Zardari andPrime MinisterRaja Pervez Ashraf both released statements strongly condemning the bombing, while also vowing to go after the culprits.[16]
Hazara leaders refused to bury their dead, giving a 48-hourultimatum to thegovernment to launch an operation and also demanded handing over the city to theArmy.[17] Protests were held countrywide in the aftermath of the blast, with about 1500 marchers reported on the streets ofLahore and protests inMuzaffarabad andMultan.Zulfikar Ali Magsi, theGovernor ofBalochistan Province, criticized Pakistan's security forces regarding the violence, stating. "Our security institutions, police,FC and others are either scared or cannot take action against them".[10]
We demand that a special court be set up and the culprits be punished.
— Imran Khan, chairman ofPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf,[18]
During aSenate session inIslamabad, numerous lawmakers staged a walkout to protest the government's failure in addressing the "root causes" of terror.[19] TheShia Ulema Council of Pakistan observed a strike in Karachi through a peaceful sit-in.[20] Political parties, including thePakistan Muslim League (N),Muttahida Qaumi Movement and Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen among others raised the incompetency of the government and called for swift action to be taken.[21]On his officialTwitter account,Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan expressed being "disturbed and saddened" by the killings[22] and strongly condemned the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, demanding the LeJ culprits who were behind the attack be punished, while adding that members of his party would hold protests to express solidarity with the Hazara people.[18]
Action should have been taken against Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) long time ago.
TheSupreme Court of Pakistan tooksuo moto notice of the incident on 18 February and scheduled an open hearing the following day, in which the Balochistan Advocate General andAttorney General of Pakistan would be summoned.[23] At the hearing, Chief Justice of PakistanIftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry remarked that an operation should have been conducted against the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi a long time ago. While pointing to the failure of intelligence agencies, Chaudhry also questioned how the attacks had taken place despite the heavy presence ofFrontier Corps in Quetta.[24]
The Foreign Minister ofIran,Ali Akbar Salehi, also denounced the attack, and called it a "criminal act which only serves the interest of the enemies of the Pakistani nation."[25]
United Nations Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon strongly condemned the blast and called for "swift and determined action against those claiming responsibility and perpetrating such actions" while reiterating "strong support" from the United Nations for "efforts by the Government and people of Pakistan to protect religious and ethnic minorities and to combat the scourge of terrorism."[26]
Raja Pervaiz Ashraf announced a "targeted operation" in Quetta aimed against the culprits. Ashraf also removed theInspector general of Balochistan Umer Khitab from his post. A six-manparliamentary group arrived in Quetta to inspect the post-attack situation and hold talks with the affected Hazara community.[21]
On 19 February, security forces killed four high-profile targets accused of killing Shia civilians and arrested 170 suspects during an operation. Among the arrested men was one of the masterminds of the Hazara Town attack. The operation was conducted within the outskirts of Quetta and "bomb-making material, weapons, suicide vests and ammunition" were retrieved by intelligence and paramilitary officials during the exercise, however there are no official sources that verify this as fact.[7]
