The explosion damaged the dome of the Imambargah, situated on the main MA Jinnah Road, police said, adding that its thud also shattered the windowpanes of the adjoining buildings. The bomb blast sparked violence in several localities of the provincial metropolis, as angry youths took to the street and torched a petrol pump, several vehicles, including a police mobile van, a bank and eight makeshift shops.

"As I came out of a mosque after the Maghrib prayers, I heard a huge explosion," Adnan Chauhan, a police constable who was also hurt by a shard, told The News at the Hashmanis Hospital where he was admitted for treatment.

"I along with my brothers rushed to the Imambargah and found several people lying in a pool of blood in its prayers hall," he added. "With the help of the area residents, we shifted them to hospitals."

"Two persons riding a motorcycle threw something in the Imambargah and fled towards the Lines Area," a witness said. "A white colour car was following the motorcyclists," he said, "perhaps the car riders were providing cover to the attackers."

Twenty-one injured were brought to the Civil Hospital, where six of them were pronounced dead on arrival, hospital sources said. Another 14 injured were referred to the Liaquat National Hospital.

Sources at the Liaquat National Hospital said they have received dozens of critically injured persons and seven of them expired during the course of treatment. Three dead and eight injured were brought to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, the JPMC sources said.

DIG (Operations) Tariq Jamil confirmed 18 people were killed in the blast. Seventeen of the dead were identified as Maulana Mustaque Ahmed Mazhar, the prayer leader, Syed Masood Ali Naqvi, Yawar Hussain, Ghazanfar Abbas, Raza Askari, Syed Waqar Ali, Murtuza Ali, Sajjad Ali, Hyder Ali Sanjani, Muhammad Salman, Shuban Ali, Israr Hussain, Muhammad Ali, Danish Raza, Shahzad Ali Bangash, Zeshan and Raheel. Another is yet to be identified.

Drawing similarities between the Hyderi mosque blast and the Imambargah Ali Raza explosion, DIG Investigation Fayyaz Ahmed Khan Leghari said: "It could be a suicide bombing." "We are investigating the blast from different angles and the facts would transpire once thorough investigation is completed," he added.

Police sources told The News that two police constables Zia and Tanveer Abbasi of the Brigade police station, who were standing guard on the Imambargah, had been arrested for negligence of duties.

The blast triggered violence in several localities, including Gulberg, Incholi, Malir, Abul Hassan Isphahani Road, Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Lasbala Chowk, where angry protesters chanted slogans against the subsequent bombings in the port city.

Soon after the explosion, angry youths gathered in front of the Imambargah. They chanted slogans against the government and hurled stones at the vehicular traffic. The protesters attacked a petrol pump situated on the MA Jinnah Road and set it on fire. A vehicle of the Bomb Disposal Squad parked nearby was also torched.

In Gulberg, protesters attacked a bank branch and set it ablaze. They also torched a minibus of route No W-11, a bus and a truck. In Patail Para, the protesters forced the traders to shutter their shops. They also torched a bus of route No 2-K and several auto-rickshaws parked on the Business Recorder Road.

Protesters set a vehicle on fire and blocked the roads in Nad-e-Ali vicinity of Malir. Separately, another group of protesters blocked the main Superhighway. Syed Abdul Wahab, a resident of Usmanabad, was bashed by a mob when he was passing through Lasbala Chowk. Abdul Wahab, who sustained critical injuries, expired at the Civil Hospital.

A group of protesters torched at least six vehicles in the jurisdiction of Soldier Bazaar police station. Heavy contingents of police and Rangers have been sent to the violence-battered areas.

The Rangers personnel spotted some protesters who were whisking away a vehicle near Hussaini Blood Bank in Soldier Bazaar police precinct. The law enforcers were attacked when they tried to stop the protesters, sources told The News.

However, the Rangers personnel opened fire on the protesters, injuring six of them. The injured identified as Faheem, Zahid, Kazim, Zakir, Liaquat and Talib Hussain were rushed to the Civil Hospital, where doctors said that the wounds of Liaquat and Talib were life threatening.

"This (the blast) is part of the conspiracy to drive wedge between Shia and Sunni Muslims," said Allama Hassan Turabi, a renowned Shia religious scholar. Lamenting the "martyrdom" of "18 innocent worshipers", Hassan Turabi questioned, "Where is the government? Who is responsible for these continuous killings of Muslims?"

He said that when a bomb exploded in Hyderi Mosque, he had warned that the next target would be a Sunni cleric or mosque. "And yesterday Mufti Shamzai was assassinated," he said, "again I warned that the next target would be a Shia personality or mosque, but they paid no heed to my warnings."

KARACHI, May 31: Two persons died and several others were injured when unknown armed men opened fire at a crowd of blood donors waiting for their turn outside the Husaini Blood Bank near Numaish intersection on Monday night.

The donors had rushed at the blood bank following the bomb blast in the nearby Imambargah Ali Raza on M. A. Jinnah Road earlier in the evening. None of the deceased could be identified till late in the night. One of them was stated to be 22 year old and the other about 55 years.

Edhi sources claimed that the crowd was fire upon by members of law-enforcement agencies. Witnesses said that the Rangers had first been attacked by unknown people. They claimed that the Rangers returned the fire killing the two persons.

An official of the Husaini Blood Bank told Dawn that one of the victims had died on the spot after receiving a bullet wound in his head. Soon after the blast, violence erupted in many localities of the city with enraged mobs resorting to attack private and public properties, including vehicles and bank branches causing heavy damage to most of them.

Enraged youths trapped a police mobile, which had tried to reach a troubled spot on M. A. Jinnah Road, in front of the Imambargah Ali Raza. Later, they set the mobile van on fire. A Rangers' mobile which had taken position near the PSO pump on the road was also set ablaze.

Sensing the dangerous situation, police and Rangers moved out of the area and stayed away from the violence-hit localities. Witnesses said that as the angry youths set the petrol pump on fire, the Rangers personal had fled from the spot leaving behind their vehicle.

The Shell petrol pump near the Mazar-i-Quaid was again attacked and damaged by protesters. The pump had already been ransacked and set afire during violence on Sunday. Yet another petrol pump, located in Soldier Bazaar, came under attack and set ablaze by the enraged youths.

Groups of protesters, mainly youths, lit bonfire on Abul Hasan Ispahani Road and Ancholi society (Federal B Area). They emerged on the main Shahrah-i-Pakistan from the side of Ancholi (block-20) and attacked several moving vehicles with stones. Later, they set fire to a truck and a Suzuki van.

At some places, miscreants opened fire at the police. Police returned the fire and resorted to heavy teargas shelling. People in the localities around Nipa Chowrangi took to the streets and blocked University Road by setting old tyres on fire.

A resident of the Paradise Homes told Dawn that police resorted to shelling which was so intense that the gas had filled the apartments causing breathing problems to the inmates. "We had to come out of our homes to escape teargas effects," the other residents said.

Miscreants in a locality near Abbas Town set a wine shop on fire. Police fired teargas shells to disperse them. Reports of sporadic shooting were coming from different parts of the city till late Monday night.

As the news of the blast reached Malir, enraged protesters took to the National Highway and blocked its Malir-15 section. They also blocked the main Sharea Faisal by erecting barricades, making bonfire and staging a sit-in. The protesters also blocked rail tracks suspending the rail traffic for considerable time. Schedule of five down and four up trains was disrupted due to the blockade.

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Most parts of Karachi paralyzed; death toll climbs to 24
1-6-2004

KARACHI, June 1: Life in several parts of Karachi came to a standstill on Tuesday as mourners attending the funeral of most of the victims of the Imambargh Ali Raza mosque bombing and protesters clashed with police on the city's man through fare, the M.A. Jinnah Road.

Police fired teargas shells to disperse the mourners who torched vehicles and public and private property. Meanwhile, the death-toll in the mosque blast and other incidents of Monday evening's violence rose to 24.

Most of the city streets wore a deserted look on Tuesday as people stayed indoors and commercial and trading activities remained largely suspended. Transporters kept their vehicle off the roads fearing a serious breakdown in the law and order situation.

Twenty-one bodies of the worshipper were laid to rest in the city's two graveyards following funeral prayers held on M.A. Jinnah Road. Hundreds of people attended the prayers which were led by Maulana Ghulam Ali Wazari.

When the funeral procession started moving towards Mewashah Graveyard, it came under heavy teargas shelling from police near the Sea Breeze Plaza. Eyewitnesses said the shelling was so intense that buses carrying the bodies had to return and choose an alternative route.

This enraged youths among the mourners who set fire to public and private property. They also exchanged fire with police, eyewitnesses said.

The worshippers who died in the bomb blast were identified as Danish Raza, Mohammad Raza, Ghulam Abbas, Zain Raza, Mohammad Salman, Mohammad Suliman, Shaban Ali, Haider Ali Soomjee, Syed Masood Ali, Mohammad Ali and Mohammad Sajjad (brothers), Shahzad Ali Bangash, Ghazanffar Abbas, Shahdab Ali, Syed Haider Raza, Sajjad Husain, Asif Ali, Yawar Husain, Raza Askari and Maulana Mushtaq Husain, the pesh imam of the Imambargah Ali Raza mosque.

The bodies of some of the victims were sent to Gilgit, Multan and Jhang. The body of Israr Husain, who worked for Suparco has been sent to Shorkot, Jhang. Haider Ali who died in the Rangers' firing outside the Husaini Blood Bank was laid to rest in Korangi. The second victim of the same firing incident, said to be about 55 years of age, could not be identified.

Talib Ali Zaidi, 28, who was wounded in Rangers' firing, has been shifted to Liaquat National Hospital where he is in stable condition. He lost an eye in the firing. Talib was coming out of the Husaini Blood Bank after donating blood when he suffered the bullet wound. He was first taken to Civil Hospital.

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Police take possession of suspect's remains - Imambargah blast
1-6-2004

KARACHI, June 1: Police on early Tuesday morning took possession of the remains of the suspected suicide bomber who blew himself up in Imambargah Ali Raza on Monday night.

A piece of skull, teeth, some shreds of black trouser and white-lining shirt were shifted from Imambargah Ali Raza to Mehfil-i-Murtaza, where a team of medicolegal officers examined them.

The MLOs team, formed on early Tuesday morning, comprised of Dr Farhat Abbas, Dr Abdul Razzak, Dr Tayyab Imrani, Dr Tayyab Khokhar of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre and Dr Saleem Shaikh of Civil Hospital.

After examination, the team observed that the skull, teeth and pieces of clothes belonged to the suspected suicide bomber. On this information, the Imambargah Mehfil-i-Murtaza management officials stated that they were not interested in keeping the remains of the suspect.

The management asked police officials concerned to take back the possession of the remains. The team of forensic experts also carried out postmortem examination of seven bodies at the Mehfil-i-Murtaza.

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LEAs' firing victim laid to rest
2-6-2004

KARACHI, June 2: A blood donor, who had died in the firing by law-enforcement agencies on some suspicion outside the Hussaini Blood Bank on Monday night, was laid to rest in a local graveyard on Tuesday night.

The victim, belonging to Ahle Sunnat, was identified as Zaheer Ahmed, 45. Father of five daughters and four sons, he earned his living by doing embroidery work. He was an elder brother of Nazeer Ahmed, an Edhi ambulance driver.

His funeral prayers were offered at Ghafooria Mosque, Soldier Bazaar. Among others, Maulana Aun Mohammad Naqvi also attended his funeral prayers. The victim's brother told Dawn that Zaheer Ahmed had gone to the blood bank on appeal for blood donation, which were being made by Edhi ambulances in Soldier Bazaar area.

He was heading towards the blood bank when law enforcers on some suspicion shot him dead. He could not be immediately identified. However, following the publication of his photograph in a newspaper next morning, his family identified him and asked the senior police officials to hand over his body to them. Later, his body was shifted to his residence in Soldier Bazaar, where area people in protest forced closure of shops and other businesses.

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Mourners give 72 hours to govt for arrest of culprits - Soyem of Imambargah blast victims
3-6-2004

KARACHI, June 3: The family members of the persons, who had died in a blast inside Imambargah Ali Raza, on Thursday, served an ultimatum on the government to arrest the blast culprits within 72 hours, otherwise the authorities would be responsible for the consequences.

The demand was made by the speakers on behalf of the victims' family members at a collective soyem on Thursday at MA Jinnah Road in front of the desecrated Imambargah.

The speakers also demanded a compensation of Rs500,000 for each victim's family, besides provision of government jobs to a member of each bereaved family. Demanding compensation for the injured, the speakers also called on the government to pay Rs1 million to carry out repairs of the damaged Imambargah.

They also demanded scrutiny of police, alleging that many 'black sheep' had penetrated the force. Speaking on the occasion, Allama Zohair Abdi, said that reshuffling in police and administration was not our concern.

"We have been burying our dead killed in sectarian attacks for the last ten years, but during this period does any of the culprits facing charges have been hanged," the Allama asked from the government.

He said that all the pending sectarian cases should be disposed of within a period of three months, otherwise Shia community would be compelled to lay siege to the courts.

Referring to the lethargic role of the state prosecutor, Allama demanded that some other prosecutor should be appointed for a speedy disposal of the pending cases.

Holding the banned outfits, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and Sipah-i-Sahaba, responsible for the bombings at the Imambargahs, Allama said that there were no differences among the followers of the Shia and the Sunni sects, adding that both the communities were at peace with each other.

Criticizing some Ulema of Shia community for forwarding the agenda of different political parties and rushing to meet the senior police officials, Allama explained that the community had neither any link with any political party nor it would allow any vested interest to use its platform.

Earlier, speaking on the occasion, Maulana Aftab Haider Abdi criticized the government for its utter failure to protect the life and property of the innocent people. He accused the law-enforcing agencies of backing the culprits.

The anti-Muslim forces did not want to see sectarian harmony in the country and were bent upon creating Shia-Sunni riots like 1982-83 in the city, he said. Some family members of those killed in the recent Quetta carnage's also attended the soyem of the Imambargah Ali Raza victim's. Following the soyem the mourners dispersed peacefully.

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Conspiracy hatched to disturb peace: Kumaili
5-6-2004

KARACHI, June 5: The Jafria Alliance Pakistan chief, Senator Allama Abbas Kumaili, has said that Karachi has been embroiled in a fire and blood under a well-planned conspiracy.

Allama Kumaili, who was flanked by Allama Furqan Haider Abidi, Allama Aftab Haider Jafri, Maulana Ghulam Ali Waziri (from Gilgit) and others, was addressing an emergency press conference at his residence on Saturday.

He said that agents of certain agencies and high officials were involved in aggravating the violence after blasts. He alleged that it was an old and shameful anti-human conspiracy of agencies to affect political changes. "We had forewarned higher authorities that one TPO and members of a peace committee were involved in the violence," he said and accused police for worsening the situation.

Allama Kumaili demanded high-level judiciary inquiry into the role of agencies in worsening the situation after the Hyderi mosque and Imambargah Ali Raza blasts. He demanded immediate payment of compensation to the injured and the heirs of martyrs. In this connection, he said that the commitment of Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Ijaz-ul-Haq and Sindh governor Ishratul Ibad to double the compensation should be implemented without any exception.

He further said that the payment of Rs2.5 million, promised by City Nazim as compensation to the victims of Keenjhar Lake tragedy last year, had not been made so far.

Allama Kumaili also demanded dismissal of certain police officials and registration of cases against them, who were involved in mishandling of Allama Nisar Qalanderi and women in Ancholi. He alleged that the policemen misbehaved with women and committed excesses after trespassing in their houses.

Referring to the firing and shelling on Hussaini Blood Bank as well as on funeral procession, he called for institution of cases against them. Besides, an operation be carried out in police department and other law enforcement agencies to screen out prejudiced personnel, he added.

In Gilgit too, he said that certain agencies were involved in creating law and order situation on pretext of syllabus issue in order to divert the attention of people from Wana operation.

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Another blast victim dies, toll now 25
9-6-2004

KARACHI: Another victim of Imambargah Ali Raza�s bomb blast breathed his last in Liaquat National Hospital early on Wednesday morning, police said. Hyder Ali (68), a resident of Zainabia Terrace, behind the Imambargah Ali Raza had suffered serious injuries, while he was offering Maghrabain prayer on May 31, 2004 when a bomb exploded. The funeral prayer of deceased Hyder Ali was offered at Mehfil-e-Shah-e-Khurasan after Zohrain prayer and later he was laid to rest at Mewa Shah Graveyard. Inspector Najabat Hussain, the investigation officer of the case told The News that with the death of Hyder Ali the death toll reached 25.

Imambargah case
11-7-2004

KARACHI, July 10: Judge Aley Maqbool Rizvi of Anti-terrorism Court (ATC) Karachi on Saturday extended the date for submitting final charge-sheet against Gul Hasan alias Ali Haider , an alleged activist of the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi nominated in Imambargah Ali Raza bomb blast case, to July 20.

The investigation officer on Saturday prayed to the court that July 23 be fixed because the bomb blast had not been received yet and the DNA test of the alleged suicide bomber Mohammad Ali Memon, was still in the process.

Gul Hasan was arrested on June 13 from Mithadar area whereas the co-accused, Asif Choutu, Mufti Obaid and others are absconding. They are also suspected to be involved in Hyderi mosque blast.-PPI

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Accused denies charge in blast case
2-5-2005

KARACHI, May 2: The accused in the Masjid Haideri bomb blast case denied on Monday charges against him before an anti-terrorism court.

Judge Haq Nawaz Baloch of the ATC-5 put off hearing of the case after recording statement of Gul Hassan, who allegedly belonged to the banned Lashkar-i-Jhangvi.

The judge fixed May 5 for hearing final arguments from special public prosecutor Mazhar Qayyum and defence counsel Mushtaq Ahmed.

The accused stated before the court that he did not belong to any sectarian or banned organization. He also disputed the time and place of his arrest and deposed that DSP Raja Umer Khattab had arrested him on June 11.

According to prosecution, he was arrested on June 13.

Gul Hasan also submitted that he did not know the suicide bomber. He said the police had already shown him to the prosecution witnesses, who identified him before a judicial magistrate and before the trial court.

As many as 25 faithful had been killed and 37 others injured on May 31 last when a suicide bomber blew himself inside the Masjid Ali Raza, located at the Old Numaish.

Accused Gul Hasan is stated to have been the mastermind of the two bomb blasts at Haideri Mosque and Imambargah Ali Raza. He is alleged to have planned the attacks with absconding accused that included Asif Chutho and Mufti Obaid.

The same court would record the statement of Gul Hasan in the Masjid Ali Raza bomb blast case on May 5.

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