Shah Ghazi is to Karachi what Data Darbar is to Lahore
KARACHI: Abdullah Shah Ghazi’s shrine is significant to Karachi as Hazrat Data Ganj Baksh’s shrine is to Lahore. And indeed, Thursday’s twin suicide attack in Clifton that bears similarities to the one in Lahore, further confirms this.
The presence of Abdullah Shah Ghazi’s shrine in Karachi may have helped avert natural disasters in the past, but Thursday night’s blasts have proved that the threat from terrorists remains imminent. Despite being declared sensitive by the Sindh Auqaf Department last year with further security measures adopted following the attack on Data Darbar in Lahore, devotees throng Shah Ghazi’s shrine in huge numbers particularly on Thursday.
Others flock the shrine for langar (free food) or to drink from the miraculous holy waters from the shrine which, they believe, cures ailments
According to one legend, Abdullah Shah possessed the power to control sea waters. Caretakers at the mazaar cite a common story of fishermen requesting him to order the sea to remain calm. With his special prayers, the fishermen were back to earning their livelihood within a few hours.
Similarly, the presence of this mazaar, say devotees, has protected Karachi from a number of tropical disasters, including the recent Cyclone Phet and the 2006 sea-storm heading from Gujarat, India.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 8th, 2010.
Blasts kill at least 5 people in Pakistan's Karachi
07 Oct 2010 14:48:17 GMT
Source: Reuters
(Adds details)
KARACHI, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Two suicide bombers blew themselves up inside the crowded shrine compound in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi on Thursday, killing at least five people, police said.
Police and ambulance services rushed to the scene.
The U.S.-backed Pakistani government is battling Taliban insurgents who remain effective despite military crackdowns on their strongholds in the northwest near the Afghan border.
The Pakistani army has been stretched because of its relief efforts during and after summer floods. (Reporting by Faisal Aziz; Writing by Michael Georgy)
(For more Reuters coverage of Afghanistan and Pakistan, see: http://www.reuters.com/places/pakistan. ((E-mail: michael.georgy@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging: michael.georgy@thomsonreuters.com; Islamabad newsroom: +92 51 281 0017))
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KARACHI: Two blasts occured at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine in Karachi on Thursday.
Ten people have been killed and over 60 have been injured as a result of the blast. Police have cordoned off the area.
A strike was being observed in Karachi on the call of Sunni Wahdat Council in reaction to the killing of one of its leaders Maulvi Muhammad Ameen.
In a similar incident earlier in July, more than 35 people were killed in triple blasts at the Data Darbar in Lahore.
9:35pm
Express News reports the Taliban have claimed responsibility for the suicide attacks on the shrine.
9:20pm
Advisor to Chief Minister Sindh Sharmila Farooqui says that she visited the shrine a day earlier and the electronic gates and the metal detectors were working fine.
Farooqui says “suicide attack is a phenomenon that nobody in this world has been able to curtail.”
She says the security was on high alert and the arrangements were “next to perfect.”
The minister says that she herself is a follower of Abduallah Shah Ghazi and condemns the attack.
9:08pm
Several petrol pumps and markets have closed down around the city, after the blasts.
BeingSamee Family just reached home… Millennium Mall, and other shops in Gulastan e Johar (en route North Nazimabad) closed ! #Karachi
Farman21 @abidifactor no all private and government schools will closed a/c to samaa tv #Karachi #Pakistan
ProPTI #Pakistan why is it so that no special warnings were issued at #karachi shrine specially after yesterday murder of pro taliban scholar
9:02pm
According to Express 24/7 reporter Ahmed Jung the first bomber was being checked at the main gate when he blew himself up, while the second blast took place at the steps which lead up to the shrine.
Express 24/7 reporter Masroor Hausen says unconfirmed reports suggest 90 people have been injured and some of them are in critical states.
9:00pm
Police officials claim to have capture a number of suspects who are being interrogated.
rai_azlan Abdullah Shah Ghazi is a person who is thought to be the reason that the Sea Water do not reach the populated area of#Karachi
madeehai I am a devotee of Allah saieen.. Used to visit Abduallah gazi when I lived in #karachi it is such a peaceful place…why#pakistan
rizwanharun Zulfiqar mirza wants mazars closed for one year#karachi is he made.
quest4clarity And the RAW, Blackwater, Mosad conspiracy theories begin to fly. This is what prevents us from dealing with the REAL problem! #Karachi
8:50pm
MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar says that his party and party chief have strongly condemned this act of cowardice, and that there was a nexus of criminal mafia and extremist elements operating in Karachi.
MQM has also announced one day of mourning.
Rectified_Guy #MQM is the only party that highlighted the Presence of Talibans RT @ravezjunejo: #Karachi #Pakistan party#MQM
8:40pm
According to a report in this paper, closed-circuit TV (CCTV) cameras put up all over the city to monitor traffic violations and suspicious activity have been off for the past four days.
8:10pm
More than 60 injured have been brought to the emergency wards, say hospital sources.
Bibi Pak Daman shrine in Lahore has also been closed.
@thekarachikid: What kind of idiots bomb the shrine of a man who according to legends stopped storms and cyclones from hitting Karachi?
8:00pm
Secretary of Auqaf committee has informed IG Sindh that he has ordered all shrines across Karachi be closed.
Members of the forensics lab are gathering evidence to uncover what was used to make the bomb.
According to hospital staff ten injured are in critical condition.
Faria_Khan_ Does anyone really know what is going on in#Pakistan?….Wheels within wheels, especially in #Karachi.#Pakistan
7:45pm
President Asif Zardari, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif and Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain have condemned the attacks.
kashaziz Blasts at Abdullah Shah Ghazi’s shrine, 10 killed 65 injured. #Karachi once again gone to dogs.
kashaziz Blast at shrine happened a day after media reports that CCTV cameras across #Karachi are defunct.
7:40pm
The Sunni Tehreek has announced a three day mourning.
Amirazher easy solutions all shrines in #Karachi are ordered to close down citing security issues http://t.co/UJhLo6w Na hoga bans na bajeygee bansuri
Farman21 @YusraSAskari yes, there are people protesting in Nazimabad and Lines Area #karachi
7:35pm
According to an eyewitness, the first blast occurred when a guard tried to stop a suicide bomber and he blew himself up.
7:30pm
Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza has said that two heads have been found at the site. He maintained that the security at the site was not lax. He indicated that the blasts might be ‘suicidal’ in nature.
faisaljamkhan Karachi blasts work of none other then #RAW#Blackwaters #Mosad
DrAwab Raises a grave Question – with Zardari in town security was diverted to protect the unworthy VViP’s and NOT the people#karachi #fb
7:25pm
According Seemi Jamali, head of emergency, over 50 injured have been brought to Jinnah Hospital.
According to Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza the blasts occurred at the gate of the shrine.
7:20pm
According to police reports the blasts occurred within the span of a few minutes.
7:15pm
A bomb disposal squad has been dispatched to the site.
The lights have been shut off at the shrine and law enforcement agencies are asking the public not to come near the shrine.
7:10pm
Initial reports suggest that the blasts were caused by a suicide bomber.
7:05pm
The injured are being shifted to Jinnah Hospital. Emergency has been declared at all hospitals in Karachi.
A large number of people were gathered at the shrine.
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Another shrine attacked
Security officials cordon off the blast site. PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI: At least eight people were killed, including two children, and more than 65 people were injured after two bombs exploded at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi Mazaar in Clifton on Thursday night when devotees had thronged the area.
According to witnesses, a suicide bomber approached the main gate at around 7 pm. He was carrying a bomb, which he set off as he approached the walkthrough security gate. The explosions were heard at least three kilometres away.
According to Jinnah hospital accident and emergency chief Dr Seemin Jamali, more than 60 injured people were brought to them. Others were taken to Civil hospital and nearby hospitals as well.
Shortly after the attack, the police cordoned off the area and people were forced to evacuate for fear of a third explosion. The Rangers arrived along with the Bomb Disposal Squad.
Two severed heads were taken into police custody, said home minister Zulfiqar Mirza, who confirmed the suicide bombings.
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan has claimed responsibility for this attack.
Auqaf or religious affairs department officials also arrived at the shrine. The walls are protected with barbed wires. “We provided all the security we can,” said Mirza. “We are doing our best to take the injured people to the hospitals … and are investigating the matter. Pakistan has been under threat for a while. We also have this fear [of attacks] at the back of our minds… We received warnings of threats to shrines earlier … We keep warning the public to avoid public places.”
“It is really regrettable that terrorists are attacking places of worship. Those who attacked the shrine are enemies of Pakistan and Islam.”
Mirza claimed that the CCTV cameras that were recently set up near the crime scene “have nothing to do with this” incident.
“They are still under trial and are with the [government’s] IT department. We have given orders to seal the shrines in Karachi. Now the people have to realise how important life is. These people [attackers] are trying to destabalise the government you elected,” he said.
“Physical security has to be increased … but we have good coordination among the police,” said CCPO Karachi Fayyaz Leghari, adding that the CID and the SIU are focused on terrorism and crime. The police have both heads of the suicide bombers.
He said that the CCTV cameras are currently on trial, for which briefings are underway. “We will have a good system in place,” he said.
“Everyone wants to place 20 cameras everywhere. They [intelligence agencies] work behind the scenes. When there’s bad direction from the top, then you find [mismanagement] at the bottom,” said former IB DG Masood Sharif Khattak, who added while security is provided by the police, the officials need to be more responsible.
Federal interior minister Rehman Malik condemned the incident and demanded reports from the IG Sindh and DG Rangers while the Sunni Tehreek announced a three-day-mourning period. The MQM has announced one day of mourning. The president, prime minister and heads of political parties condemned the incident. The All Karachi Trade Union announced a strike on Friday. All educational institutes will remain open on Friday, said the secretary of education, however.
Explosions were meant to derail peace in Karachi, said the MQM. There was unrest in Nazimabad, New Karachi, Lines Area after the attack.
“They were suicide attacks and the heads of those who carried out attacks have been sent for DNA tests,” IG Sindh declared.
TPO Clifton Tariq Darejo quoted witnesses as saying that the first attacker blew himself up at the first check point just a few yards inside the main gate. “The seond one then ran towards the main shrine and tried to enter the tomb but due to stringent security measures had to blow himself up at the second check point,” Dharejo said. “Many lives have been saved because of the stringent security measures. The guards sacrificed their lives.”
Ministry of auqaf version
Auqaf Secretary Iqbal Ahsan Zaidi said that security were on high alert at the time of the explosion. “It was due to the sacrifices of the security guards that many lives have been saved,” he said.
However, no CCTV camera was installed in the shrine at the time of the blast. “We install cameras in the shrines, including at the shrine of Abdullah Shah Ghazi at the time of Urs,” he said. According to him, the ministry has to look after 84 shrines in Sindh and around one million people visit them.
“We have meagre resources and we could not install CCTV cameras at shrines on a permanent basis,” he said. “However, recently we had approval from the department to install cameras at the shrine and the job will soon be done.”
He said 35 security personnel and staff members of the department were performing on duty at the time of the blast. “The security guards sacrificed their lives and our assistant manager is critically injured.”
All shrines in Karachi have been sealed due to security concerns, said the DIG (East)
“There have been no proceedings against madrassas. We should unite against extremists. Until we don’t act against these elements, we will have to continue to pick up bodies,” said Babar Ghauri, reported ARY.
Meanwhile, incidents of violence were reported from across the city following the blasts.
Three buses were set ablaze – one in Dalmia, one in Garden and the third in Jamshed Quarters.
Three people were reported to have been injured in incidents of aerial firing in SITE and Jamshed Quarters, but police were not confirmed these injuries.
Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah announced Rs500,000 compensation for the families of the dead and Rs100,000 for the injured.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 8th, 2010.
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Pakpattan toll rises to six
Updated at: 1220 PST, Monday, October 25, 2010
PAKPATTAN: The death toll in a powerful explosion at Dargah Hazrat Baba Farid Ganjshakar here today, mounted to six, Geo News reported Monday.
According to the Rescue sources, the blast occurred after Fajr prayer at the eastern gate of the shrine that killed at least five people on the spot and injured several others including women, who were shifted to DGQ Hospital.
However, a woman succumbed to injuries at the hospital raising the death toll to six.
Heavy contingent of police arrived on the scene and cordoned off the area.
According to the RPO, the explosives were placed in a milk container, which went off with a loud bang.
The entire area is shrouded in air of mourning.
The Shrine has been closed.
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Blast at Baba Farid shrine, 7 dead
At least seven people have been killed while twenty others injured in a blast after dawn (Fajr) prayers at the Shrine of Baba Farid in Pakpattan. PHOTO: AFP
LAHORE: At least seven people have been killed while twenty others injured in a blast after dawn (Fajr) prayers at the Shrine of Baba Farid in Pakpattan, on Monday.
A Rescue 1122 official Asim Bhatti said nine of the injured are in a critical condition.
Two men riding a motorbike left a milk container near the gate of the shrine in Pakpattan, 190 kilomtres (120 miles) from the Punjab provincial capital Lahore, which then exploded in a huge fireball, a witness said.
“We have four killed and about 12 wounded,” regional police chief Mohammad Kashif told reporters.
“The rescue work is over. We’re now investigating.”
The blast blew up a boundary wall and damaged several shops and stalls outside the shrine, witnesses said.
Police said the mausoleum was undamaged, adding that the blast took place near the eastern gate which was already closed for security reasons.
Sufi worshippers have frequently been the target of bloody attacks by militants in Pakistan.
Earlier this month, at least eight people were killed, and more than 65 people were injured after two bombs exploded at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi Mazaar in Clifton when devotees had thronged the area.
In July this year,thirty five people were killed and 175 injured as three blasts hit Data Darbar in Lahore.
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