Shia trader, three sons killed in Quetta attack

Ghulab Shah, a hardware trader of Afghan origin, was travelling home with his six sons at about 8pm when four gunmen ambushed his car on the high-security Sariab Road. Shah and three of his sons died instantly, while two of them were injured. Officials in Quetta’s Civil Hospital said their condition was critical.

Police deployment on the road had been increased especially after an attack on Baloch intellectual and provincial Secretary for Mines and Minerals Jan Muhammad Dashti on Monday. Banned wahabi Sunni group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (Lashkar e Jhangvi is a terrorist cell of al qaida in Pakistan) had claimed responsibility for the attack saying Dashti was targeted because of his ‘anti-Islam’ opinions. The official was seriously hurt and flown to Karachi in Chief Minister Aslam Raisani’s aircraft.

According to police sources, Jan Muhammad Dashti was on his way to his office when the gunmen intercepted his vehicle and fired at him. He was rushed to Civil Hospital and given first aid, and was then shifted to Agha Khan Hospital Karachi.

No group has claimed Tuesday’s attack so far. Law enforcement agencies cordoned off the area and began a search.

Hazara Democratic Party Chairman Hussain Ali Yousafi and a police deputy superintendent have been killed recently in a wave of sectarian attacks on Shia Muslims in the city.