1000s stage rallies against killing of Shia leader in Karachi

Thousands of demonstrators have staged a protest rally in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi to protest the killing of a senior Shia leader.

This comes after main Shia organizations called for protests after the assassination of Allama Deedar Ali Jalbani, who was shot dead along with his guard and three others on Tuesday.

Almost all institutions and businesses remained closed and traffic stayed off the streets across the troubled city on Wednesday.

Reports further indicated that all schools and government offices remained closed in the port city of Karachi, and main universities postponed examinations amid fears of violence.

The protesters are demanding the Pakistani government to arrest the assassins.

Protest rallies also took place in Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi where demonstrators chanted slogans against the ongoing violence aimed at Shia Muslims across the militancy-riddled country.

The protesters also expressed their “categorical rejection of hate speech and incitement to violence” against the Shia Muslims.

The government has deployed thousands of police and paramilitary troops in all major cities to maintain order and prevent unwanted incidents.

This is also the latest deadly incident in a wave of violence against the Shia Muslim community in Pakistan. The incident comes two weeks after twin bomb explosions killed at least seven people and injured 50 others in Karachi’s Shia-dominated area of Ancholi.

Human Rights Watch says hundreds of Shias were killed in Pakistan in 2012, which was the deadliest year on record for the Shia Muslim community.

Reports say the anti-Shia terrorist group of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) was behind most of the attacks on Shia Muslims in Pakistan.

This comes while Shia Muslims in Pakistan say the government must take decisive action against the forces involved in the targeted killings. They also accuse Islamabad of failing to provide security for the Muslim community.

The country’s Shia leaders have called on the government to form a judicial commission to investigate the bloodshed.

Shias make up about one third of Pakistan’s population of over 180 million.