Lahore terror attack widely condemned in Pakistan
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Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets Saturday in the country to protest the terror bombing attack at a shrine in the city of Lahore Thursday night, in which over 45 innocent people were killed and 175 others injured.
A protest in Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore launched by hundreds of people, mostly family members of the victims, triggered off the nation-wide demonstration in the country.
On Saturday, demonstrations against the brutal killing of innocent people by three suicide bombers were reported in nearly all the major cities across the country.
In Lahore, over 5,000 protestors continued to take to the streets for the third consecutive day, condemning the violence as well as criticizing the government both at the federal level and the provincial level for their failure to effectively crack down on terrorism and protect the ordinary people.
They were chanting slogans against the Punjab government and shouting, "Down Shahbaz Sharif", the chief minister of Punjab province. They also ridiculed the government's repeated vows to defeat terrorism.
Angry protestors, wielding batons, throwing stones and setting blocks on the streets of the city, clashed with police and security forces who tried to disperse them. At least six protestors were reportedly arrested during the clashes in the city.
In Rawalpindi, thousands of people staged a protest rally on Saturday. At the rally, protestors were chanting slogans and urging local government to take measures to protect the safety of the people. In the capital city of Islamabad, a partial shutdown of business was reported. Traffic remained thin on the main roads in the twin cities and major markets there were all closed.
In Karachi, the largest industrial city in the country, many people gathered at the main M.A. Jinnah Road of the city, praying for the victims of the Thursday night attack in Lahore.
From the southern city of Hyderabad to the northern city of Peshawar, the whole nation was immersed in deep grief and anger. People from all walks of life in Pakistan have strongly condemned the heinous act carried out by terrorists against civilians.
Both Pakistani President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani have condemned the terrorist attack in Lahore and vowed to eradicate terrorism in the country. The Chief Justice of Pakistan also vow to bring all the culprits behind the scene to justice.
Different parties and religious groups including Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Sunni Tehreek (ST) have also condemned the attack, calling for demonstrations and strikes across the country.
The Sunni Ittehad Council, a conglomerate of several religious groups, called for countrywide strike to protest against suicide bombings at Data Darbar shortly after the attack was reported. The lawyers of Bahawalpur District boycotted the courts in protest against the tragedy.
The reaction taken by the public in Pakistan this time is much stronger than that towards the May 28 attacks on two mosques in Lahore which claimed more than 90 lives and injured over 100 others.
"I just simply could not understand why in such a short period of time a second attack happened in the same city of Lahore despite the repeated vows by the government to eradicate terrorism in the country, " said a local resident in Islamabad during an interview with Xinhua.
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