Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Terrorists Kill Hazara DSP Hassan Ali and Subordinates

Bodies of 4 policemen, including DSP Hassan Ali, are being carried at the mortuary of Civil Hospital.

Quetta, Jan. 14 — Deputy Superintendent Police Hassan Ali and three of his subordinates were killed near Polytechnic College, Sariab Road, when unidentified gunmen on a motorbike opened fire on their car. (Scroll down for photos)

Police Constables Nasrullah and Mohammad Mehdi, including driver Mohammad Taqi, were among the dead. Three of those killed, including DSP Hassan Ali, are Hazara police officials.

Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has accepted responsibility for the attack.

President Asif Ali Zardari has condemned the killings. His remarks came amid his statement about an attack on the house of a Peoples Party member.

Chief Minister Aslam Raisani has ordered Capital City Police to arrest the responsible elements within 48 hours.

Demonstrations against killings of the policemen took place in Hazara Town and in the city. Hazara Town protestors blocked Kirani Road and shouted slogans against the government.

A separate group of protestors carried the dead bodies of the police officials to IGP Office. Inspector General of Police, Asif Warrch, addressed the protestors and ensured them that appropriate steps are being taken. The demonstrators, led by provincial minister Jan Ali Changezi and Balochistan Shia Conference, then took the bodies to the heavily guarded Corps Commander’s Cantt area house and staged a sit-in.

Garrison Commander Major General Tariq addressed the demonstrators, saying the entire country is in the grip of violence. He stressed that greater cooperation from the people can help overcome the situation.

Protestors left the area with the bodies of the policemen after Garrison Commander’s address.

Isolated attacks on Hazaras have increased sharply during the month of Muharram this year in spite of a peaceful Ashura day, suggesting the attacks may be sectarian rather than ethnic.

A man, Arif Hussain, was gunned down on Kirani Road by unidentified gunmen on January 12. Earlier on, two Hazara drivers were killed and a mother and her child wounded in a separate attack on Kirani Road.

The latest string of attacks may be related to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, since a number of their top masterminds fled from ATF custody last year. The fugitives were involved in previous terrorist acts and have not been arrested yet.

Read more about the security situation in Quetta…

• Lashkar-e-Jhangvi masterminds break away
• Two Hazaras gunned down, child and woman injured

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Photos of protests in Quetta against killings of the policemen

Bodies of 4 policemen, including a Deputy Superintendent of Police, are being carried to the IGP Office.

Bodies of 4 policemen, including DSP Hassan Ali, are being carried at the mortuary of Civil Hospital.

Bodies of Deputy Superintendent of Police Hassan Ali and his subordinates are lying at the mortuary of Civil Hospital.

Protestors shout slogans during a demonstration outside Core Commander House in Cantt area against the killing of Hazara policemen.

Protestors shout slogans during a demonstration against killing of Hazara policemen, including DSP Hassan Ali.