Update 11: Police nabs 44 suspects in Karachi
Update 10: Ismaili community delegation meets Chief Secretary Sindh 1, 2.
Update 9: Centre for Research & Security Studies report titled, “Karachi: The State of Crimes”
Update 8: Ismaili community delegation meets Additional Inspector General Police
Update 7: School students suffer after attack
Update 6: Ismaili delegation meets Sindh governor – Governor appreciates the services
Update 5: Cases lodged
Update 4: Opinion Kamran Shafi – Express Tribune
Update 3: TheNews Editorial
Update 2: Dawn.com Editorial
Update 1: Two victims of Jamaat Khana blast laid to rest
KARACHI, Aug 13: A woman and a child lost their lives while 29 others were injured in grenade attacks on two Aga Khani Jamaatkhanas on Tuesday night. Several improvised explosive device (IED) attacks also took place in other cities and towns of Sindh on the eve of the Independence Day.
The first attack on a Jamaatkhana near Karimabad killed the woman and the child while 26 other people suffered injuries.
“Unknown miscreants threw a hand grenade from a wall of the Shahra-i-Pakistan, which landed inside the Jamaatkhana, killing Shirin and a child, Salman,” Central Karachi SSP Amir Farooqi said.
He said the injured included women and children, but they were out of danger.
It was prayer time from 6-8pm and a large number of people were there when the terrorists attacked them.
Three people were injured in another attack on a Jamaatkhana in Metroville, SITE.
Sources at http://www.dawn.com/news/1035730/
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-13
http://tribune.com.pk/story/
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp
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http://tribune.com.pk/story/590196/two-victims-of-jamaat-khana-blast-laid-to-rest/
KARACHI: The two people who lost their lives in a grenade attack at the Karimabad Jamaat Khana were laid to rest on Wednesday amid sobs and tears.
Forty four others had suffered injuries when some motorcyclists threw a hand grenade inside the Jamaat Khana within the limits of the Azizabad police station. Five people were wounded in a separate attack on another Jamaat Khana in SITE on Tuesday night.
Thirty-eight-year-old Shirin, wife of Suleman, and her four-year-old son, Sharmil, succumbed to their injuries on their way to Aga Khan University Hospital. Their funeral prayers were offered at the Jamaat Khana on Wednesday evening and they were laid to rest at the Sakhi Hassan graveyard. A large number of family members, relatives, neighbours and community members came to offer their condolences.
The mourners demanded the government arrest the culprits. “What is wrong with them (terrorists)? What would they achieve by killings an innocent woman and her child?” asked the victims’ relative, Noor Ali, while talking to The Express Tribune. “We have never expected any terror activity against us.”
Police and paramilitary soldiers were deputed to avoid any untoward incident during the funeral prayers, as security has been put on high alert around the Jamaat Khanas across the city.
Women and children comprised the majority of 51 patients brought to the AKU.
“The injured were shifted to hospital wards after first aid treatment at the emergency department,” said a spokesperson for AKU. “Most of the injured have been released from the hospital after medical treatment, while a few are still admitted.”
Two separate cases were registered against the attacks at the Azizabad and SITE police stations. Police have placed sections 302 (murder), 324 (attempt to murder), 295 (defiling a worship place) of the Pakistan Penal Code, ¾ of the explosive act and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act. The cases were registered against unidentified persons.
An FIR No.183/13 was registered at the Azizabad police station on the complaint of Agha Khan council official, Irfan, and an FIR no. 599/13 registered at SITE ‘A’ section on behalf of SITE Jamaat Khana’s chief security officer, Abdul Hameed.
Initially, the police suspected the involvement of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in the brazen attacks.
“Earlier we were suspecting the involvement of LeJ and TTP, but we are not sure as it is not the modus operandi of either of the groups,” a senior police officer of the district Central told The Express Tribune. “There is no reason to suspect the involvement of a nationalist party of Sindh as they do not have much presence in these areas, however, another group might have been behind the attacks.”
Investigations SSP Malik Altaf while talking to The Express Tribune said the investigators have yet to ascertain the motive behind the attacks. As such attacks are unusual, the investigation is likely to be transferred to the Crime Investigation Department or Special Investigation Unit.
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http://www.dawn.com/news/1035976/the-list-expands-ismailis-attacked
THE grenade attacks targeting two Aga Khani Ismaili jamaatkhanas in Karachi on Tuesday, in which a woman and her child were killed, are yet another indicator of where Pakistan stands after over six decades of its creation. Once again we have proof of how far we are from the dream of a pluralistic, inclusive state in which Muslims of various persuasions as well as citizens of other faiths were meant to live peacefully without having to contend with the tactics of a violent minority seeking to impose its extremely narrow interpretation of faith on them. In this case, as in so many other instances of terrorism before it, senior police officials suspect the involvement of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi — an Ismaili doctor had given evidence against the militants currently on death row. However, there have also been reports that the Ismaili community has been receiving threats from the TTP. Indeed, let alone religious minorities who have all too often faced the wrath of the militants, no sect within Islam seems to have been spared either. Shias, Barelvis, Sufis and Deobandis not subscribing to the militant worldview have been killed individually and collectively. Last year, Dawoodi Bohras joined the list as a predominantly Bohra neighbourhood in Karachi was bombed, while community members were also shot in Hyderabad. And now, the Aga Khani Ismailis have become the latest Muslim group to be attacked.
The Ismailis are a peaceful, progressive and largely apolitical community that has done much for Pakistan’s health and education sectors, especially in regions where the government has failed. In the past there has been anti-Ismaili violence in Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan, mostly in the form of communal flare-ups. But the Karachi attacks bear the all the hallmarks of the militants. What should the state’s response be, apart from issuing the usual condemnations and orders for increased security at places of worship? The answer seems deceptively simple: the authorities must take decisive action against violent non-state actors with sectarian and militant agendas. But of course the million-dollar question is: will it?
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http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-8-196154-Violent-evening
The twin hand-grenade attacks on Ismaili worship places in Karachi highlight the dangerous times we live in. This is the first time the Ismailis – a peaceful, philanthropic community – have been hit, though there have been fears for some time that this could happen. Shias have been targeted for many years now, with the Hazara community in Balochistan having been particularly singled out for decimation. The usual suspects that come to mind are the TTP militants or the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and other associated groups. But there are also many other possible groups that could have been responsible. Karachi has been torn apart by ethnic and sectarian strife, with political parties dividing their support along these lines. On top of that, criminal gangs – usually associated with one party or the other – often use violence to establish their control and ensure that protection money is paid to them.
We may never find out who was behind the attacks since law-enforcement agencies in Karachi are also beholden to political patrons who may not find it in their interest to investigate the incidents meaningfully. The sad truth is that the matter will become yet another of the hundreds of unsolved cases in the city. The PML-N government has not made law and order in Karachi a priority, perhaps because its own presence and support in the city is minimal. When the prime minister visited the city he barely stayed for a day, and then too concentrated more on economic uplift. The ultimate solution to the metropolis’ travails lies with the political parties that must present a united front against the encroaching militancy and realise that politics can be practised without guns and gangs. What are the chances of that happening? A heavy hand to bring back sanity is inevitable.
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http://tribune.com.pk/story/590627/so-then-to-this-now/
By Kamran Shafi
The out-of-control and rampaging terrorists are now down to attacking the Jamaat Khanas of the most peaceful, philanthropic, tax-paying, law-abiding community of Pakistan: the Ismailis. Just a day after Eid, 38-year-old Shirin and her four-year-old son Sharmil died in an attack on the Karimabad Jamaat Khana and 44 others sustained injuries, some surely life-threatening. A standing ovation to the brave warriors who target innocent women and children.
Recall those of you who want to face facts that His Highness Sir Sultan Muhammed Shah, Aga Khan III, after whom we have named roads in Lahore and Karachi, was a founder-member and then first president of the All-India Muslim League and was one of the first to petition the British government to consider Muslims as a distinct nation in India.
His grandson, the elegant Prince Karim Aga Khan has done more philanthropic work in Pakistan than any other single person or institution, setting up the peerless Aga Khan University, which among other institutions, runs the Aga Khan Hospital and Medical College in Karachi, extending his work to the Northern Areas, including Chitral, which has brought much prosperity to those backward parts of our country.
Going back in time, it was none other than HH Aga Khan II, who gifted his house in the expensive Akasaka area in downtown Tokyo to Pakistan as its embassy. His various generosities to the country were great and unbounden, and this is what we do to his followers? Kill a woman and her child in a Jamaat Khana, which also serves as a community centre. Shame on us, sirs.
So typical, actually, and in keeping with our penchant of turning away friends and those who would wish us well; and clasping to our breasts the worse of the lot, be they the ‘good’ Taliban; heartless takfiri murderers; coldblooded and callous Salafi executioners, you name it. And so we go playing with fire and letting the murderers get stronger still.
KARACHI – Police have registered the cases against unidentified persons for killing and injuring several people belonging to the Agha Khani community in repeated attacks on Agha Khani Jamaat Khanas on Tuesday. The cases were registered at Azizabad and SITE police stations on the complaint of community members against unidentified persons.
A woman, Shirin, 37, and her four-year-old son, Sharmil were killed and 46 others wounded in the blasts.
The victims and the injured were taken to the Agha Khan Hospital. According to hospital sources, a total of 46 people were wounded in Karimabad’s Jamaat Khana’s attack in which two – a woman and her son – killed while five others were injured in Metroville’s Jamaat Khana. However, most of them were later discharged from hospital due to minor injuries.
On Wednesday, the funeral prayers of a woman and her son were offered at Jamaat Khana. Later they were buried at Sakhi Hassan graveyard in presence of score of people. Security was put on high on the occasion.
Police investigators have failed to ascertain the actual motive and group behind the incident and initiated further investigation. DSP Saleem Akhtar Siddiqui said the attacks were being investigated from all aspects.
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http://dawn.com/news/1036297/ismaili-delegation-meets-ibad
KARACHI, Aug 16: Sindh governor Dr Ishratul Ibad lauded the contribution of the Ismaili community under the leadership of Prince Karim Aga Khan and expressed concern over the recent attack aimed at the community.
Talking to a two-member delegation of the Ismaili community at the Governor’s House on Friday, the governor condemned the attack on the community. He assured the delegation comprising Ismaili community chief in Pakistan Iqbal Wulji and director of the Aga Khan Funds for Economic Development Sultan Ali Allana that the government was taking steps to improve law and order.
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http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-4-196863-Aga-Khan-School-students-suffer-after-a
Schools with playgrounds and other outdoor facilities are already rare in Karachi. And with the growing incidents of terrorism, especially cracker attacks, even those having these facilities are turning them into no-go areas for students.
One such example is the Aga Khan campus in Karimabad, situated next to the Ismaili Jamaat Khana, which was the target of a terrorist attack last week.
At least two people were killed and 28 injured in the August 12 attack when unknown attackers hurled hand grenades inside the Jamaat Khana, raising alarm among the community, which had hitherto remained largely free of any targeted violence. Another Jamaat Khana in the Site area was also attacked less than an hour later.
As a result, security has been beefed up at the campus, which houses the SMS Aga Khan High School, the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, and the Institute for Educational Development, which also has a number of foreign research scholars.
Spread over 26 acres the campus has its own cricket and football grounds, a hockey field, as well as basketball and volleyball courts. But following last week’s attack, all these facilities are now out of bounds for the hundreds of students studying there. Independence Day celebrations were also called off following the attack.
“Even during the sports period, the students are now forced to engage in indoor games. They play carom, table tennis and ludo,” said a teacher at the school, requesting not to be named.“It is very unfortunate. Without any proper channels to vent out their energies, the children will become rowdy.”
Security concerns are so high that even the morning assemblies are not being held. Every day after the school bell rings, students line up and make their way to their classrooms. Once inside they recite verses from the holy Quran and sing the national anthem – all inside their respective classrooms and in sharp contrast to the joint, outdoor assembly that was held before the attacks.
“The school administration is also extra vigilant about identity cards. Students and teachers have to display them at all times,” said a student of the school.Every morning when the school starts, and then when it closes, a police vehicle can be seen patrolling the area – home mostly to the Ismaili community – trying to keep a watch on any suspicious activity or people.
The security department of the community was not available for an official comment on the situation, but an official, again requesting the customary anonymity, said precautionary measures had been taken.
“If there is a blast outside your house, you will take precautions too. But actual help will only come when the government provides us proper security,” he said.And the fears go beyond the school.
The elders of the community, still puzzled by this unclaimed attack, are trying to get extra security from the government and also trying to conclude what the reason behind the attacks was.“A delegation of the Ismaili community has met the governor and the inspector general of police of to ask for security,” said an elder of the community.
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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013%5C08%5C21%5Cstory_21-8-2013_pg12_9
KARACHI: A four-member delegation of the Ismaili community met with Additional Inspector General Police (AIGP) Karachi Ghulam Qadir Thebo, at the Central Police Office here on Tuesday. The delegation apprised AIGP of various problems as well as difficulties faced by the community, said a police statement. Thebo informed them about measures taken by the police, and pointed out that security is being ensured for the government and semi-government buildings, community centres, public places as well as both public and private health centres, welfare organizations and academic institutions. The delegation expressed satisfaction over the security arrangements, the statement added.
Karachi, one of the worlds largest cities, an ethnic melting pot and this countrys economic backbone, has also become one of the most dangerous metropolises on the planet. The rise of violent crimes, vandalism, extortion and increasingly frequent closure of business and commercial activities are all alarming for citizens of this city.
But, a look at crime statistics maintained by the Citizens Police Liaison Committee highlights just how stark this rise has been in recent years.
Murders that are assumed to be linked to political rivalries are generally dubbed arget killings and usually receive more media attention than other fatalities in Karachi. But a close assessment of data on deaths due to violent crime shows that the violence is pervasive and not limited to political activists.
In effect, the rising annual death tolls are predominantly made up of victims without known political allegiances, according to the Centre for Research and Security Studies. The report titled, “Karachi: The State of Crimes” pointed out that the number of non-political persons falling victim to target killers far exceeded those with known party allegiances.
To add to the long-standing ethnic and sectarian fault lines, groups of minorities that had erstwhile avoided the mayhem, are also now in the cross hairs of terrorists. Extremism Watch by Jinnah Institute reported grenade attacks on two congregations of Ismailis in Karachi on August 14.
Perhaps the most alarming aspect is that despite the mounting death toll, not a single target killer has been sentenced for this crime to date. Police, government officials and judiciary appear to be passing the blame among each other citing inadequate law enforcement, poor investigations, lack of political will and tedious judicial system.
The story is much the same when considering other serious crimes, such as snatching and theft of automotives. The surging tally for vehicle theft and snatching is easily comprehensible given the context of falling proportion of recoveries by police.
According to an Al Jazeera report published in March this year, Karachi is the deadliest city among the largest metropolises of the world. It highlighted that the murder rate of “12.3 per 100,000 residents” is so high that the other mega cities do not even “come within 25 percent of Karachis murder rate”.
If the alarm bells are not already ringing at the Sindh Home Ministry, Federal Interior Ministry and Sindh Police headquarters, one shudders to fathom what would shake their stupor.
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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013%5C08%5C23%5Cstory_23-8-2013_pg7_12
KARACHI: Chief Secretary Sindh Muhammad Ejaz Chaundhry has assured all sections of society that Sindh Government is aware of their issues including the security problem, thus all out efforts are being made to ensure the safety and protection of all schools of thought. He was talking to a four-member team of Prince Karim Agha Khan Ismaili community, who called on him at his office on Thursday. According to an official handout, the delegation apprised the CS about the Educational, Health and Social Sciences being rendered by their community, in addition to certain difficulties with specific reference of recent mishaps that occurred near their community centre. They drew the attention of the CS towards road issues linked to Agha Khan Community Buildings including 1.1 kilometre road around Al-Azhar Garden of Scheme-33. To which affect the CS advised Additional IG Police Ghulam Qader Thebo to beef up security, and ACS Home Murtaza Ali Shah and Commissioner Karachi to also look into the issues. staff report
http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-4-197537-CS-assures-Ismaili-community-of-security
Following the recent attacks on Ismaili jamaat khanas in the city, the Sindh chief secretary has assured the community of resolution of their problems, especially concerning the safety and security of the community members.
A four-member delegation of an Ismaili committee called on CS Ejaz Chaudhry at his office on Thursday and apprised him of the issues being faced by the community.
Chaudhry said the provincial government was doing its best to discharge its responsibilities to protect the lives and properties of the members of different sects and religious schools of thought and practice.
The members of the delegation apprised the CS of the services being rendered by different organisations of the Ismaili community in the fields of health, education and other social sectors.
They also informed him of the difficulties being faced by Ismailis, with specific reference to the recent attacks on the buildings of the community.
They also drew his attention towards the issues of roads linking to the buildings of the Ismaili community, including the 1.1-kilometre road close to Al-Azhar Garden in Scheme-33.
Chaudhry directed Karachi Additional Inspector General of Police Ghulam Qadir Thebo to beef up security around the Ismaili places of worship in the city.
He also directed the additional chief secretary of the home department and the city commissioner to look into the civic and safety concerns, including road maintenance and communication issues, being faced by the Ismaili community.
Ismailimail 