Attacks on Hazaras tantamount to "carnage": Pakistan Chief Justice

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Chief Justice today termed as "carnage" the targeted killings of the minority Hazara community members, asserting that no words are enough to condemn such "unfortunate" attacks.

Mian Saqib Nisar, heading a two-member Supreme Court bench which also included Justice Ijazul Ahsan, expressed anger at the unabated targeted killings of Hazaras, who are mostly Shiite Muslims and live in and around Quetta, capital of the Balochistan province.

"In my opinion, this (Hazara killings) is equivalent to carnage. We have no words to condemn these unfortunate attacks," Nisar said.

He said such attacks must stop.

"We have to protect the lives and property of the Hazara community," he said.

Balochistan Deputy Inspector General Abdur Razzaq Cheema presented a report about attacks on Hazaras in compliance of an earlier order by the apex court.

According to the report, 399 Shiites, 36 Sunnis and 29 settlers from the Hazara community had been killed in targeted attacks during the past six years.

It also said that nine people from the community were killed in the past four month, while 28 security officials lost their lives in such attacks this year.

Hazara community counsel Iftikhar Ali told the court that the killings had been going on for the last 20 years, but no action was taken to punish the attackers.

"Our lives and property are being endangered...Our people had to leave for Australia [to escape the attacks]," he said.

The court adjourned the hearing until the end of holy month of Ramazan which is expected to start from May 17.

Hazaras are a small community and its members migrated from Afghanistan at different times to settle in Quetta.

They are mostly Shiite Muslims and an easy target for extremists who consider them as heretics.