Posted on 02/09/2006 6:07:04 PM PST by blam
22 die in clashes on Shia holy day
By Imtiaz Ali in Peshawar and Thomas Coghlan in Kabul
(Filed: 10/02/2006)
Pakistan's attempts to curb Islamic extremism suffered a new setback yesterday when sectarian violence killed 22 people and left scores more injured on a Shia holy day.
A Pakistani soldier stands guard at the site of the bomb explosion
Sunni Muslim extremists were blamed for the suicide bombing of a Shia procession celebrating the festival of Ashura in Hangu in the North West Frontier Province.
The attack, which left 60 per cent of the town's bazaar in ruins, provoked a wave of retaliatory Shia violence in which several Sunnis were killed, according to local sources.
Since 2002 President Pervez Musharraf has attempted to rein in extreme Islamic groups, banning several militant organisations, at least one of which had tried to assassinate him.
However, during the past year, Mr Musharraf has looked increasingly beleaguered as forces intent on destabilising his regime attack him on several fronts.
In the north, Pakistan troops are facing determined resistance from remnants of Taliban and al-Qa'eda forces that took refuge in Pakistan after the Taliban regime in Afghanistan fell in 2001.
And in the south west the gas-rich province of Baluchistan has seen almost daily clashes between security forces and bands of lawless Sunni Muslim Bugti tribesmen, also said to be sympathetic to al-Qa'eda's cause.
Yesterday's bombing in Hangu provoked a fresh wave of protests from Shia leaders who accused the government of failing to protect Shia populations.
Ashura marks the death of the Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussein, an event that led to the schism between Shia and Sunni Muslims.
Why does this even make the news? Murdering people is just part of standard practices within Islam. It shouldn't come as any surprise then, when people are killed.
Excellent news...for a change, they are killing each other. May we see more of the same. That way, we infidels have some chance of surviving these barbarians.
It's not even surprising that it happens on their "holy days". It would be surprising if one went by without bloodshed. I really think we'll have to nuke 'em all at some point.
Of course the Muslim masses of the world would demonstrate against this sort of horrible violence, but there are cartoons to be dealt with. Priorities and all that.
Osama's m.o.
Maybe this will tempt the Shiites to turn him in.
muslim on muslim violence. Those people aren't happy unless they are killing someone, even if it is each other.
Assume that the Green Flag flew over the whole world someday in the distant future -- they'd still be slaughtering each other by the thousands. What a way to live.
I think that if we just give them a nuke, but make it so big that it can't be moved, and put a button on it to trigger it, it wouldn't be all that long before they blew themselves up.
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