Country Advice Pakistan Pakistan – PAK39326 – Quetta – Wedding Photography – Kidnapping 19 October 2011 1. (a) Can you confirm whether a suicide attack happened on 3 September 2010 at Mezan Chowk and, if so, (b) can you provide more details about the background of this attack, e.g. where it happened, what time of day, etc.? On 3 September 2010, a suicide bombing took place at Mezan Chowk (Mizan Chowk, Meezan Chowk),1 a “commercial hub” located in the city of Quetta.2 The target of the attack was a Shi‟a Muslim rally3 that had been organised to mark al-Quds Day4 and express solidarity with the Palestinians.5 The rally had been organised by the Shi‟a Imamia Students‟ Organisation.6 1 „Quetta rally suicide bomb kills dozens‟ 2010, BBC News, 3 September http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south- asia-11177686 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Zafar, M. 2010, „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep- 2010/Bloodbath-as-bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011. 2 „Pakistani agency reports details of Quds rally blast‟ 2010, BBC Monitoring Service, source: Associated Press of Pakistan, 3 September. 3 „Quetta rally suicide bomb kills dozens‟ 2010, BBC News, 3 September http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south- asia-11177686 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep- 2010/Bloodbath-as-bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011; Reporters Without Borders 2010, „Journalists killed and injured in Quetta bombing, reporter kidnapped in Islamabad‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 6 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4c8df29814.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 4 Zafar, M. 2010, „Suicide attack on Shia rally kills 60 in Quetta‟ 2010, The Nation, 3 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Karachi/03-Sep-2010/28-killed- in-Quetta-suicide-blast – Accessed 10 October 2011; „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Committee to Protect Journalists 2010, „Journalist, media worker dead in Quetta attack‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 7 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4cb6c80029.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 5 Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/Bloodbath-as- bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011; Reporters Without Borders 2010, „Journalists killed and injured in Quetta bombing, reporter kidnapped in Islamabad‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 6 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4c8df29814.html – Accessed 10 October 2011; Committee to Protect Journalists 2010, „Journalist, media worker dead in Quetta attack‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 7 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4cb6c80029.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 6 „Suicide attack on Shia rally kills 60 in Quetta‟ 2010, The Nation, 3 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan- news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Karachi/03-Sep-2010/28-killed-in-Quetta-suicide-blast – Accessed 10 October 2011; „Quetta rally suicide bomb kills dozens‟ 2010, BBC News, 3 September http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11177686 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Zafar, M. 2010, „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011. Page 1 of 24 It was reported that the bombing took place at Mezan Chowk near Baldia Plaza.7 No reports were located indicating the specific time when this suicide bombing occurred, although it was reported that the rally had commenced soon after Friday prayers.8 One report indicates that a crowd of 450 people took part in the rally,9 while other reports indicate that “hundreds” of people had participated.10 The reported number of persons killed in the attack ranged from “at least 42”11 to “over 70”.12 While a substantial number of people were killed and wounded in the initial blast,13 further casualties were sustained in violence that was perpetrated in the immediate aftermath of the bombing.14 The majority of the persons killed were reportedly Hazaras.15 The militant groups Lashkar-e-Jhangvi16 and the Pakistani Taliban17 both claimed responsibility for the attack. According to BBC News, “the rally was one of many that take place in Pakistan each year on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to support the Palestinian demand for a 7 „Pakistani agency reports details of Quds rally blast‟ 2010, BBC Monitoring Service, source: Associated Press of Pakistan, 3 September. 8 Zafar, M. 2010, „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011. 9 „Pakistan: Quetta bombing death toll rise to 59, around 200 injured‟ 2010, BBC Monitoring Service, source: Geo TV, 4 September. 10 Zafar, M. 2010, „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/Bloodbath-as- bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011. 11 „UN chief deplores deadly attacks against Pakistan‟s Shiite Muslims‟ 2010, UNHCR Refworld website, source: United Nations News Service, 3 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4c84aca21a.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 12 US Department of State 2011, International Religious Freedom Report for 2010 (July-December) – Pakistan, 13 September , Section 2. 13 Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/Bloodbath-as- bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011. 14 „Suicide attack on Shia rally kills 60 in Quetta‟ 2010, The Nation, 3 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Karachi/03-Sep-2010/28-killed- in-Quetta-suicide-blast – Accessed 10 October 2011; Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english- online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/Bloodbath-as-bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011; Reporters Without Borders 2010, „Journalists killed and injured in Quetta bombing, reporter kidnapped in Islamabad‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 6 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4c8df29814.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 15 „45 martyrs of Quetta suicide-blast laid to rest‟ 2010, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/45-martyrs-of- Quetta-suicideblast-laid-to-rest – Accessed 10 October 2011. 16 Zafar, M. 2010, „55 killed in Quetta rally attack‟, Daily Times, 4 September http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010%5C09%5C04%5Cstory_4-9-2010_pg1_1 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Baloch, B. 2010, „Bloodbath as bomber rips through Quetta rally‟, The Nation, 4 September http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/04-Sep-2010/Bloodbath-as- bomber-rips-through-Quetta-rally – Accessed 10 October 2011; Reporters Without Borders 2010, „Journalists killed and injured in Quetta bombing, reporter kidnapped in Islamabad‟, UNHCR Refworld website, 6 September http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4c8df29814.html – Accessed 10 October 2011. 17 „Quetta rally suicide bomb kills dozens‟ 2010, BBC News, 3 September http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south- asia-11177686 – Accessed 10 October 2011; Mehsud, S. 2010, „CORRECTED – WRAPUP 11 – Bomb kills 54 in Pakistan, Taliban threatens U.S.‟, Reuters, 4 September http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/09/04/pakistan- idUSSGE68207V20100904 – Accessed 10 October 2011; US Department of State 2011, International Religious Freedom Report for 2010 (July-December) – Pakistan, 13 September , Section 2. Page 2 of 24 homeland”.18 The rally had reportedly been organised by the Shi‟a Imamia Students‟ Organisation.19 According to the Daily Times, the rally “started from Islam Imambargah, located on the Prince Road, soon after the Friday prayers”.20 The Pakistani online newspaper, Daily Times, also reported that “hundreds of people joined the rally as it moved towards the centre of the city”.21 The Pakistani television network Geo TV stated that a “450-strong crowd” took part in the procession,22 while The Nation made reference to the participation of “hundreds of people from [the] Shia community”.23 The Associated Press of Pakistan also stated that “it was learnt that the rally had to be culminated at an imambargah [Shi'a congregation hall] through Liaquat Bazaar”.24 The Nation reported that police had attempted to stop the rally when it reached Alamdar Road,25 while the Daily Times indicates that they attempted to stop it “near Mali Bagh”.26 The police attempted to stop the rally from continuing due to “security concerns”, but the protestors broke up the barricades that had been set up by the police and continued towards Mezan Chowk.27 According to the Daily Times, the police claimed that the protestors had not followed the route that they had previously approved, and also that they had warned the protestors that none of their officers had been deployed in Mezan Chowk.28 18 „Quetta rally suicide bomb kills dozens‟ 2010, BBC News, 3 September http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south- asia-11177686 – Accessed 10 October 2011.