Karachi Violence .. Updates & Discussion ..

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Kindly post all Karachi related news & updates to this thread ...


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Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- At least 30 people were killed in Karachi on Monday night and Tuesday, the latest deaths in cycle of ethnic and political violence in Pakistan's commercial capital.
On Sunday, 60 motorcycles and five vehicles were burned in the city, said Murtaza Ali, a Karachi police official.
The violence has killed more than 1,000 people this year, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Nearly 200 people were slain in July alone.
The rampant violence appears to have little to do with the Taliban and other Islamist extremist groups that are viewed by western leaders as Pakistan's most pressing security problem.
Rather, police and government officials say the violence is fueled by bitter ethnic rivalries and political parties vying for power in this mega-melting pot, home to roughly 15 million people from at least a half-a-dozen ethnic groups.
Three political parties are usually at the center of the fight for power in Karachi: the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), the Awami National Party (ANP), and Pakistan's People Party (PPP).
The PPP, led by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, considers Karachi its political base, but politics here is dominated by the MQM, which represents "muhajirs," the descendants of immigrants from India decades ago.
In recent years, the MQM's power has been challenged by the ANP, a secular party that represents ethnic Pashtuns.
Hundreds of thousands of ANP supporters have migrated south to Karachi because of the militant violence in their home region of northwest Pakistan. Analysts say a general lack of law and order has allowed supporters of these parties to adopt a gang mentality.
Like gangs, the factions often control different regions of Karachi that are usually off-limits to rivals.

 

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KARACHI: Addressing the National Assembly on Tuesday, Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s deputy parliamentary leader Haider Abbas Rizvi said the MQM had put its political integrity on the line and that whatever was happening in Karachi was not targeted killing but indiscriminate and mass killings, DawnNews reported.

Participating in a debate in the National Assembly on the situation of Karachi, Rizvi said MNA Iqbal Mohammad Ali’s home had been attacked four times and if conditions did not improve by the end of MQM’s deadline, which was put forward by Altaf Hussain earlier, then the government would be responsible for a backlash.

He added that the Police and Rangers in Karachi were not authorised to act against the terrorists. Furthermore, Rana Tanveer of Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) said that the government was constantly being apathetic towards the situation in Karachi and not a single office bearer was willing to resign or take responsibility.

Moreover, Aftab Sherpao said that the whole nation was tense about the circumstances in Karachi and advised compiling a report of all incidents of violence that have taken place in the last three months along with a list of all those arrested.

 

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KARACHI:
In what appears to be yet another ethnic clash, property worth millions was torched and at least 10 people were killed on Monday night.
Authorities worry that the incident, believed to be a fight over land-grabbing between Seraiki-speaking people from southern Punjab and Pashto-speaking people, may be the beginnings of a new ethnic war.
Surjani’s population is a mix of Urdu-, Seraiki- and Pashto-speaking people. Usually clashes between ethnic groups across the city are thought to be between certain groups but for the first time, a new group has entered the fray.
“This is the first time that I have seen Seraiki- and Pashto-speaking people fighting,” said Additional IG Saud Mirza, who has been in a slew of meetings with officers across the city in an attempt to stem the violence. “It is definitely not a good sign.” He feared that this new violence could escalate and spread. More and more law enforcers have been deployed to Surjani in an attempt to nip the danger in the bud, he added.
A police official told The Express Tribune that the whole issue, like most political clashes in the city, is the land mafia’s doing. In the beginning, two land grabbers locked horns and the scuffle gradually went from two ethnicities fighting to a political clash.
He said that land grabbers and the supporters of political parties use each other to their own advantage. “If you compare the Seraiki and Pashtun, then you find that the Pashto-speaking men are more in number,” he said. “The Seraiki do not have the resources, weapons or manpower to take on the Pashtun.”
Both are, however, backed by political parties.
Pakistan Seraiki Qaumi Ittehad (PSQI) chairman Colonel (rtd) Jabbar Abbasi told The Express Tribune that the clash was not a random, isolated incident but was the result of a chain of many small fights that have been breaking out between the two groups for a couple of months now. He denied the involvement or support of any political party.
He claimed that it started when a Pashto-speaking person allegedly urinated on a newly constructed house belonging to the PSQI general secretary, Haji Nazeer Ahmed, in Surjani, leading to a fight between the two groups.
Next, a Seraiki-speaking person identified as Allah Dita, was killed and four others were wounded in firing while they were on their way to the Northern Bypass to hold a protest over the abduction of Seraiki children, also apparently by the rival group. “We are targeted each time,” he said. “How long are we meant to bear it? The police never catches the actual culprits.”
On Sunday, Tahir Khan, identified as Allah Ditta’s killer, by the Seraiki group, was murdered in Surjani. “The Seraikis and Pashtun have always lived together in harmony, but recently these small fights have escalated into a bigger problem,” Abbasi said. “When Tahir died, the Pashtun began attacking our houses and we did what we had to do to protect ourselves.” Pashtun leader Younus Buneri contradicted Abbasi, claiming that the Seraiki and Pashtun have nothing against each other and the Pashtun have always supported the Seraikis. He said that the same force that is behind the violence across the city is responsible for the unrest in Surjani. The people behind the violence take minor scuffles over personal matters and turn them into ethnic or political issues, he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 3rd, 2011.

 

[somebozo]

There is another thread already running with much detailed info..that should be made sticky!

 

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ISLAMABAD:
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) warned against the city’s targeted killing spree growing even bigger to become a ‘massacre or ethnic cleansing’ in Tuesday’s National Assembly session.
An impassioned call was made by the MQM seeking immediate government action to what some of its members described as violence engineered by elements within the provincial administration of Sindh. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) responded by advising the party to accept the existence of the rival Haqqiqi group.
“We can never get to the bottom of the problem in Karachi as long as we continue to deny their [Haqqiqi] existence,” said MNA Abdul Qadir Patel.
Patel advised the MQM to open negotiations with the Haqqiqi group, whose leadership had hitherto been under detention but was recently released by courts and greeted by a senior Sindh minister at a political gathering.
The PPP MP from Karachi also called for giving Sunni Tehreek (ST), another group in friction with the MQM in the past, a chance.
(Read: The killing fields of Karachi)
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)’s Khawaja Saad Rafiq urged the government to send a parliamentary fact-finding mission to Karachi and implement its report.
A senior MQM leader warned against ‘naivety’ to deal with what he called the bashing of a particular ethnic community in Karachi.
“This attitude will harm us and you as well,” said MNA Haider Abbas Rizvi, referring to the government’s handling of violence in the city.
Earlier, the MQM staged a walkout from the house and its emotional members started running out of control, shouting anti-government slogans when Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza tried to discontinue a debate on the unrest in Karachi.
But the walkout and a strong protest forced the government to change plans of bringing to the house issues other than the overnight debate.
Rizvi said that in parts of the city people were being attacked due to their ethnic affiliations and were even being forced to vacate their home in some areas. “It’s like internal displacement,” he said.
(Read: In Karachi, hold on to the gains)
He further warned the government against pushing MQM to the wall and added that a sense of isolation was growing within the party that can be translated into a sense of deprivation or alienation of the group.
Rizvi warned that instability in Karachi would have a direct effect on peace and harmony in the entire country.
“Karachi is the centre of gravity … if you want to save Pakistan, save this city,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 3rd, 2011.

 

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KARACHI: Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Wednesday said the government would take strict action against terrorists operating in Karachi, DawnNews reported.

Speaking to media representatives here, the minister said “no targeted killings had taken place in the city since yesterday”. However, at least 11 people had reportedly been killed during violence in Karachi during the past 24 hours.

He moreover requested the media and other institutions to act responsibly given the sensitive law and order situation.

Mr Malik further said that the reservations of Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s chief Altaf Hussain regarding the situation in Karachi were legitimate and that the government would act against criminal elements operating in the city.

Mr Malik said restoring peace in Karachi was necessary.

 

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اورنگی میں رینجرز کا سرچ آپریشن، 25 گرفتار، اسلحہ برآمد، بوہرہ پیر اور جمشید کوارٹرز سے 3 لاشیں برآمد


بدھ, 03 اگست 2011 07:58
کراچی، اورنگی ٹاﺅن کے مختلف علاقوں میں رینجرز نے محاصرہ کر کے سرچ آپریشن کیا اور 25 افراد کو حراست میں لے کر اسلحہ برآمد کر لیا ہے۔ رینجرز نے رات گئے اورنگی ٹاون، علی گڑھ کالونی، گلفام آباد، اور پی بخاری کالونی کا اچانک محاصرے کر لیا۔

رینجرز حکام کے مطابق کارروا ئی انٹیلی جنس معلومات کی بنیاد پر کی گئی جس میں مخصوص مقامات کو سرچ کیا گیا۔ اس دوران علاقے کی مکمل ناکہ بندی رکھی گئی اور کسی بھی شخص کو علاقے میں داخل ہونے یا باہر جانے کی اجازت نہیں تھی۔ ڈھا ئی گھنٹے تک جاری رہنے والے آپریشن میں رینجرز کے انسداد دہشتگردی دستوں نے بھی حصہ لیا جبکہ 25 افراد کو حراست میں لے کر مختلف نوعیت کے ہتھیار بھی برآمد کئے گئے ہیں۔

دوسری جانب پولیس کے مطابق بوہرہ پیر کے علاقے سے 2 افراد کی لاشیں برآمد ہوئی ہیں جبکہ جمشید کوارٹرز کے نزدیک سے بھی ایک لاش برآمد کی گئی ہے۔ پولیس کا کہنا ہے کہ تمام افراد کواغوا کے بعد قتل کیا گیا ہے۔

 

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LAHORE:
A Human Rights Commission of Pakistan fact-finding mission, aimed at analysing the recent wave of violence in Karachi, on Monday accused ‘insensitive’ political authorities for the collapse of administration in the city.
The interim report alleged that the denial of access to civil society organisations by authorities also contributed greatly to the deteriorating law and order situation.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 2nd, 2011.

 

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KARACHI:
Law enforcement agencies, including the Pakistan Rangers and police, not only refuse to lodge cases in certain incidents of target killings, but actually tell the victim’s families to take “revenge” on their own.
These observations were made by family members of the victims of target killings to a fact-finding mission of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan that conducted its first public hearing on the issue at the Karachi Press Club on Sunday.
At least 20 families, mostly residents of the volatile towns of the city, including Orangi and Lyari, came to meet HRCP representatives and shared their heart-wrenching tales.
However, even as the families recounted their tragedies, at least nine more people were killed in the city.
The father of nine children, Sher Khan, from Orangi No. 5, said his house was taken over by armed men on July 5. They set up a check post or morcha in one of the rooms. Khan said that when he approached the Rangers and police, they told him that he should not bother them and get his own revenge. Habibullah claimed that dozens of houses were burnt in Orangi by ‘terrorists’ who used Molotov cocktails or “alcohol bottles filled with petrol”. Businessman Fawad said his shop in Aligarh cloth market was also burnt down.
Abdul Bai said that when gunmen opened fire on his tea shop on April 14 near the Lucky Star chowrangi, two of his cousins died. “There’s a headquarters of the army personnel nearby, but no one came to our rescue,” said Bai, who himself suffered two gunshot wounds. He said the sad part was even though an FIR was registered, nothing has come of the investigation. “In fact, the police is telling us that we should try to find the culprits ourselves,” he said.
Suleman’s father Abdul Latif from Usmanabad said everyone knew who killed his son when his body was found in a gunny bag. But despite this, the family didn’t get justice. Husna screamed in pain as she recalled how her 22-year-old son was burnt alive in Lyari’s Dubai Chowk last February.
All of the families who attended the public hearing hailed either from Pathan or Baloch communities. Human rights campaigner Hina Jillani said the HRCP was conscious of the fact that there have been an equal number of victims belonging to other communities as well, the cases of which would also be looked into. IA Rahman assured the families that the HRCP would raise its voice on their behalf at every forum and investigate their claims from other sources.
HRCP members, including chairperson Zohra Yusuf, Hina Jillani, IA Rehman and Ghazi Salahuddin, are part of the fact-finding mission, that also met a select group of reporters separately earlier in the day in their quest to uncover the reasons and solutions to the conflict.

 

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KARACHI: The government has deployed hundreds of extra paramilitary troops in Karachi, struggling to end violence that has killed 58 people in five days, officials said Wednesday.
Authorities are battling to put a halt to gunfights raging across the city, where political, ethnic and criminal rivalries left more than 200 people dead last month.
The provincial government is offering Rs10 million for citizens who provide information leading to the arrests of those responsible for the violence, at its worst since 1995.
“Hundreds of paramilitary soldiers and policemen deployed in the city’s troubled western neighbourhoods last night,” local government official Sharfuddin Memon told AFP.
“House-to-house searches are going on and some suspects have been detained.”
(Read: How the police is failing the people of Karachi)
The death toll on Wednesday reached 58, after at least 35 people were killed in the space of 24 hours and provincial health official Hamid Parhiar said at least four bullet-riddled bodies were brought to the hospital.
Inspector General (IG) of Police Sindh Wajid Durrani said police had made 24 arrests and some officials said calm had been restored.
Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain warned people overnight to stockpile food for a month as the law and order situation worsens.
“We are running out of patience. For how long will we collect the bodies of innocent people?” said Hussain in a written statement to party workers before a party meeting, due to be conducted by telephone on Wednesday.
Government officials and coalition party members have distributed stickers, pamphlets and placards pleading for peace, but to little effect.
The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan recently described Karachi as a city in the grip of political, ethnic and sectarian “polarisation”.
It said 490 people were killed in targeted killings in Karachi in the first half of the year, compared with 748 in the whole of 2010.

 

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Military should intervene to end unrest in Karachi: Altaf

KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain said Wednesday that the army and rangers should intervene to end the unrest in Karachi, DawnNews reported.

He further said that the army should take action against elements regardless of their association.

Addressing the MQM’s General Workers Meeting in Karachi and Hyderabad, MQM chief said that he wants the army to come and see who is spreading unrest in Karachi.

He said that the he had given an ultimatum to the president and the prime minister to impede violence in Karachi within 48 hours but there was no response.

“MQM condemns acts of violence in Karachi. The government has failed to establish peace in the city,” said Altaf Hussain.

He further said that innocent people are being gunned down in Qasba Colony.

“President should end the supremacy of lyari gang war mafia,” said Altaf.

Altaf Hussain said that he is a Sindhi and declared a social boycott against those who do not consider Muhajirs as Sindhi.

 

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ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari was given a mandate to hold talks with Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) in the wake of Altaf Hussain’s two-day ultimatum to restore peace in Karachi.

The mandate was given to the President by Sindh cabinet at a meeting held in the capital city of Islamabad today (Wednesday).

Speaking on this occasion, President Zardari said that MQM’s apprehensions would be addressed through talks.

“I want to take the Sindh cabinet on board for holding talks with MQM,” Zardari said.

“If the United States can hold talks with the Taliban after ten hours, why can’t we do the same with MQM?” he asked.

After the cabinet’s meeting, President Zardari convened a meeting of PPP’s ministers.

On Tuesday, Altaf Hussain gave the President and Prime Minister a two-day ultimatum to restore peace in Karachi. SAMAA