Pakistani Shiites’ sit-in, demos, mark solidarity with martyrs of Quetta

Whole of Pakistan turned into venue of protest as Shiites across Pakistan came out of houses to stage sit-in and rallies to express solidarity with martyrs of Quetta on Saturday.

They demand Balochistan including Quetta city be handed over to the army because government failed to protect the lives of Pakistani citizens in all over Balochistan.

The sit-in of the Shiites of Quetta entered into 26th hour because neither the federal government nor the provincial government have taken notice of the massacre of around 100 Shiites and Sunnis in two terrorist attacks on Alamdar Road on Thursday night.

On the other hand, Shia Muslims residing in all over Pakistan have stated staging sit-in and demonstrations on a call from Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen’s chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri. Mr. Jafari and his party’s cabinet members have rushed to Quetta and joined the main sit-in there.

Women, children, youths and elderly Shiites have gathered on main streets across Pakistan to lodge their protest against the terrorists and callousness of the government.

In Karachi, commercial capital of Pakistan, Maulana Sadiq Raza Taqvi, MWM Karachi chapter’s secretary general is leading the protestors at main Numaish Chowrangi that has been blocked for traffic.

The supporters of Shia Ulema Council have blocked main national highway near Mohammadi Dera Malir No.15 Bus Stop.

National Highway has been blocked due to Shiites protest in Hyderabad, H Mahdi, a woman official of the MWM Hyderabad chapter informed the Shiite News.

The protest is in progress in Islamabad and main interchange of Faizabad in Rawalpindi has also been blocked for traffic. In other parts of Punjab such as provincial capital Lahore, Jhang, Bhakkar, (Nawan Sheher Chowk) Multan, Gujranwala, Gujrat and Sargodha, protest rallies and sit-in were being staged.

In Sindh province, apart from Karachi and Hyderabad, Shiites of Mirpurkhas, Badin, Sanghar, Nawabshah, Naushero Feroze, Khairpur, Larkana, Shikarpur, Jacobabad and Sukkur are protesting till the filing of this report.

Shia Muslims of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber-Pukhtoonkhwa province and of Kurrum Agency and Khyber Agency too have joined the country-wide protest.

Even the Shiites living in other countries such as Britain began protesting against the Shia genocide in Pakistan. They had protested on Friday and also protesting on Saturday evening.

Reports had it that ruling Pakistan People’s Party’s Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has directed the federal minister Mola Bux Chandio, PPP Sindh chapter general secretary Taj Haider, deputy speaker Sindh assembly Shehla Raza and Aijaz Jakhrani, MNA, to reach Quetta and meet the protestors.

Ruling MQM leader Altaf Hussain has also expressed solidarity with the protestors and on his behalf the MQM leader Farooq Sattar has contacted the protestors in Quetta. Reports had it that Altaf Hussain also asked the government to take notice of the sit-in protestors.