Police say 24 killed in Pakistan's Karachi violence
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Islamabad, May 21, IRNA -- Police chief in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi says that 24 people have been killed in targeted attacks over the past 24 hours.
Wasim Ahmed said that 17 ethnic Pashtoons were among those killed in attacks in different parts of Karachi, also Pakistan’s commercial center.
The police chief said that 650 people have been arrested in connection with the violence.
Unconfirmed reports said that death toll reached 30.
Tension gripped the city on Thursday as the government closed educational institutions and exams postponed.
Traffic was thin on the road and markets were also closed in several parts of the city.
A Pashtoon leader Shahi Syed alleged that ethnic Pashtoons were targeted in the attacks, accusing provincial governor Dr Israt-ul-Ebad of behind the violence.
Governor's party Mutahida Qaumi Movement rejected the accusations.
The city saw incidents of firing on Wednesday as unidentified gunmen shot dead mostly labourers and poor people in Karachi.
Miscreants also torched vehicles in the city.
Rival ethnic and political leaders accused each other of violence and several parties called for judicial inquiry.
The Home Minister of Sindh Province of which Karachi is the capital presided over a high level meeting and ordered the police and paramilitary force “Rangers” to take tough action against the miscreants.
Police said that violence started Tuesday night at Shah Faisal Colony neighbhorhood when gunmen shot dead a person and three other people were killed later in the same locality.
On Wednesday as a sudden violence started in the morning when unidentified gunmen killed one person Gulistan Jauhar area of the city.
Karachi has seen targeted and ethnic violence in the past as several ethnic communities including Urdu speaking ‘Mujahir’ who migrated from India after partition of the sub-continent in 1947, Pashtoons, Punjabis and Sindhis are settled in Karachi.
In January and February some 40 people were killed and dozen others were injured in ethnic violence, taking death toll from violence to 90 this year, according to police data.
Upto 424 people were killed in Karachi in ethnic violence last year.
**1420
End News / IRNA / News Code 1127896
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
