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Subscribe to RSSPESHAWAR, Pakistan - Gunmen opened fire on a passenger bus in the northern Pakistani district of Kohistan in an apparent sectarian attack on Tuesday, killing 18 people, police officials said.
"All the people on board were Shiites, and at the moment it looks like they were targeted by armed men from the local Sunni community,'' a senior police official told Reuters.
The bus was traveling from central Pakistan city of Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, to the northern town of Gilgit.
Police officials said the bus came under attack in an area inhabited by two Sunni tribes about 102 miles north of Islamabad.
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Sunni extremists allied to or inspired by al-Qaida and the Taliban routinely attack government and security force targets, as well as religious minorities and other Muslim sects they consider infidels. Most of the violence has been in the northwest, close to Afghanistan.
The majority of Pakistanis are Sunni Muslims, with Shiites accounting for around 15 percent of a population of around 180 million.
Qais Usyan / AFP - Getty Images
More than a decade after the beginning of the war, Afghanistan faces external pressure to reform as well as ongoing internal conflicts.
Both communities largely live in peace with each other but militants from the two sides have killed thousands of people in tit-for-tat attacks since the beginning of Islamist militancy in the country in the 1980s.
Pakistan celebrates first Oscar win
Many thousands have been killed in the last five years, and attacks on Shiites — targeted purely because of their sect — have been some of the bloodiest.Shiite Muslims are a minority sect of Islam, arising from a dispute over the successor to the Prophet Mohammad 1,400 years ago. Many extreme Sunni Muslims consider them apostates.
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Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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"Sunni extremists allied to or inspired by al-Qaida and the Taliban routinely attack government and security force targets, as well as religious minorities and other Muslim sects they consider infidels."
This is great!
At least, list of infidels is growing!
I forgot: Pakis have nukes too and these Paki nukes are harmless as they are allies on "war on terror" and Sunni Saudi and co have not certified them to be harmful unlike the Iran nukes.
It will be "flowery" (PC language) bloody civil wars of all varieties unless the US, British and Europeans put their brains.
In that case, nukes can fall into anyone's hands!
If Clintons, Bidens and many Republicans put their brains, then one can bet that these nukes will fall into al-Qaeda and Taliban hands!
Let us wait and watch how the "love and peace" people handle themselves!
I was wondering: where are the Saudi paid pipers like UN, human rights groups, all types of Crosses and other one-eyed people?
Haven't you read? Apparently Iran doesn't have nukes again and is about 30 years from making them according to the New York Times and wikileaks.
Is it just me or do others also have trouble understanding the point(s) Jonathan is attempting to make?
Sounds like incoherent and fragmented ramblings to me...
Let me be clear.
1. I am against immediate threats from Sunni inspired Islamic radicals and terrorists. For them Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are responsible.
2. I am against going to war on flimsy issues in Iran and Syria as in Iraq. Even after 30 years, Iran's nukes will be Ayotallahs' nuke fits for exhibitions before women or some uneducated bunch.
cavey, Well if the NYTimes and wikileaks say so, its got to be so.
Jonathan-1982062,
For your first point, don't blame Pakistan or the Saudis, US is responsible for creating the mess that you find there in the Af-Pak belt. Pakistanis and the Saudis were mere tools and agents to further American geo-political interests in the region. They grew up and Saudis especially have come to virtually control the western responses to recent developments in Central Asia as well as West Asia. And the second elephant, in the crashing cockpit that US is appearing to be now, which nobody talks about are the Zionists - jewish as well as christian, conservative as well as liberal, both.
Secondly, Iran's nuclear program shall have far-reaching serious consequences. Firstly, it is stupid of the Iranian regime to be adamant that they need such a program in the first place, and second, they are stupid because they are most likely to incite a regional conflict, with all their neighbors who have grown to suspect their intentions, mostly because they look crazy and belligerent. West and the rest would have done well by engaging them, by showing & demonstrating respect and regard towards them. However, it looks like westerners have progressed little in understanding and dealing with Iranians since the ancient times.
Rahul_S:
I got your point. I know more too. I have to tune my posts to readers levels.
What was my long post about, which most did not understand?
If Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are on map today, it is due to the US, British, oil companies and their worst greediness without bothering about populations in those nations.
You can't expect a Muslim nation and its leaders to act with sense! History shows it. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and others are examples.
About Israel, it will be a big chapter by itself. They will get back for trying to be too smart. I won't waste my time on Israel.
We are led to believe this is about a difference in religious beliefs between the Muslims. No, it is Iran using terrorists cells to destabilize Pakistan. No matter who dies the real goal of Iran is to create chaos, confusion, death, and destruction whenever, wherever possible. Shiites, Sunnis, western civilians (preferred) or soldiers (much preferred) still you know that you can't even be safe taking a bus trip.
No doubt that the Iranian government is irratic, but how do you know they are responsible for this particular attack? We are all "led to believe" in many things, but you text like you have factual knowledge that Iran was responsible. Pointing out two different religous factions doesn't really correlate to any one particular government being responsible. Perhaps you have more information that we don't. If so, please cite your source(s).
The good thing about the Taliban and AlQaida is that they always take responsibility for their kills. If they didn't do this, they'll say so and you can believe them.
I don't know if there is any good thing about AlQaida and the Taliban. You guys must be collecting some intellegence that I don't have becasue the article says: This attack has been done by Muslim tribals near by attacking the other sect. This type of thing is not new one Muslim sect attacking another, unless you have sources or someone in the inside. I don't think we are in any position to make assumtions.
Yea that's what I'm saying. It's not necessary to infer any Iranian conspiracy. Al-Qaida and Taliban always claim responsibility for everything they do, and as you said, Muslim sects murder each other all the time. No impossible/long-winded explanations required here, because everything can be taken at face value.
The mullah's have been teaching this swill for 1400 years! What a miserable religion.
This is about nothing more than another example of the hate filled, cruel, ignorant culture of islam! Nothing more! This horrific scourge of the earth disguised as a relgion is the worst plague to ever strike our earth! Time to unite, stamp out every vestige of this hate fill culture, begin in Europe and America where the fat, lazy muslims quietly agree with the killing and mayhem, and say nothing, do nothing.
Jack the ripper, are you suggesting murdering everyone that is of the Muslim faith in Europe and America?
Chip off the old ancestors aren't you?
Sounds like a terrible problem in Pakistan. Hope they get that nonsense handled and without any U.S., U.N. or NATO "assistance" or monetary support.
Keep it up Pakistan. You're doing such an amazing job keeping your civilians safe so you can use the terrorist groups against your "arch enemy" India... *rolls eyes*
Where is the outrage of the american muslim community over these murders ? oh that's right they only get upset when Americans offend them.
NHMAN..my point exactly! These American muslims only sit quietly, say nothing, do nothing to stop terrorism. They only demand careful and special treatment from Americans and pretend they know nothing of the terrorism that is fomented in the mosques by the imams they pay for. They are equally guilty of all of the heinous crimes and killing done by this hate filled religious culture.
better to kill each other than us.
They should really consider Banning guns in Pakistan.
No NRA. No Second Amendment. It should be easy to do.
Religion, the root of all evil.
Don't forget money too!!!
Please join us and help fight religious idiocy:
Freedom From Religion Foundation - FFRF
Islam and its followers have been liabilities to societies, nations and world right from the beginning. They have been curses wherever they have been.
Sunni Islamic followers have become real beasts in 21st century. World has not seen likes them in the history. They form 80 percent and most of problems are due to them.
Hear Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are mass Sunni Islamic beast manufacturers!
Extremists in any religion are destabilizing to any society. Simply because everything you do is justified by your faith, other faiths are evil or at the best misleading. The fathers of our country foresaw the destabilizing nature of extremism because it existed in their society just as it does today. The separation of church and state may be the most important part of our Constitution to keep our country strong. New immigrants who come from a majority Muslim country dont understand how important this right is, but their children will.
Go on hoping on future generations of immigrant Muslims. They will be worse.
Most of the terrorist plots in UK were planned and executed by the second generation!
There's gotta be a comedy in here somewhere - a 'holy' book gets burned, massive riots...members from one sect of your religion murder members of another sect in cold blood, business as usual.
Let them kill each other. Better than our troops getting in the way of their religion which promotes violence.
Muslims continue to prove the point: Islam is an invalid religion. In this day and age of "enlightment," any religion that encourages and condones abuse, violence and/or murder is invalid. Gods do not need humankind to kill one another. If a god is all powerful, it can do whatever for itself. The only one pulling the humans' strings (to do evil) is other humans. It has nothing to do with a belief system; it has only to do with one person or group's power over others. Are people really this dumb that they continue to fall for the same old song and dance? Apparently so. Obviously they like being monsters who kill.
Idiots !!
what a hideous religion.....and I use religion very loosely here.......heaven forbide that this is condemned by either sect of Islam........
Prehaps they just need a new leader, and being obama will be out of a job this Nov.............
See, see, just like Muslims say all the time ... If it wasn't for America and Israel, they'd be peaceful. I mean, everything they do is blamed on Americans and Jews. It must be our fault. Huh?
Agree. They were killing each other for over a millennium before the US or Israel existed.
If you kill in the name of God, you have blasphemed God, and cursed your family name and your children. God does not ask anyone to kill for him. This you are doing in his name for your own little sick reasons. Think about this, why would God put people on Earth to learn their lessons and then want you to kill them before they had the chance? I mean they will eventually stand before him and pay for their sins. So when were you sickos ordained to take over his job?
I mean mother theresa was probably the only one who was worthy of it....
Religion appears to have been misused by many groups as a way to seek and hold power
over others. This has been an effective way for those seeking power since the beginning
of human kind. Religion is not the problem those who misuse it are. The more educated
a civilization is has a direct relationship on how much power those who misuse Religion have. This is why the internet and outside information sources are controlled
by those in power. Education will set you free and those in power know this, instead of bombing
and killing those who oppose us maybe we should be working to make sure they
have access to Education to end this cycle of killing.
Education will set your free? Then what is all this "God" stuff? Anyone who's truely educated knows for a fact that all life comes from the blood of our lord, the Easter Bunny!
Peshawar sounds a lot like San Salvador where the Maras, a minority sect with no self-respect and surely none for others, have shot up passenger buses loaded with commuters.
I see many of you still calling Islam a religion. And, of course and as always, comments from the usual suspects, the multicultural equivocators. I guess I missed the Zionist Conspiracy speculators this morning. Islam isn't a religion. It's the 13th-14th century version of Brave New World and or 1984 produced by Monty Python's serial killer psychotic twin. It is a totalitarian, militaristic, economic, social ideology of blood lust, conquest, control and submission. And, to you pc/mc equivacators, Jews and Christians are just as bad? Seriously, what are you smoking? Sure, religion blows, but if you cannot see that Islam, the religion of body pieces, takes the prize for the all time rivers of misery and blood ideology, you really need to wake up, hear the screams of the innocent and smell their rotting flesh. If your life view has become so warped by today's standard of what being liberal means that you revile Christianity and Judaism, but defend or apologize for Islam, please, go to therapy.
I agree, they take the prize for body pieces. I wish they would tighten the borders more so no more can come here either.
Maybe it is time to put in a crazy President like Santorum. He wouldn't hesitate to wipe creatures like this off the face of the Earth. I think now Islam is a disease like cancer or smallpox, it must be eradicated.
At the earliest without much losses.
Yeah, waaaay cool. Another big war. "Bring it on"!
Islam = Pig S()t
What a bunch of COWARDS shooting unarmed people in a bus from ambush. What did they think they were proving?
They were proveing Allah hates Shiites. I hope the Sunnis kick Shiite Azz all over the middle east.
leroy: Shiites Allah hates Sunnis and he wants jihad on Sunnis!
Shiites should steal Paki nukes.
Shiites should use nukes in their jihad on Sunnis starting from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and others.
Tribal cultures are Dark Age. They should no longer exist.So let's get rid of them and install an all powerful 21st century governments instead. They desperately need Republics, not democracy where the tribe with the most people rules absolutely. Do it by force just as China did in Tibet. You WILL pay your taxes to the REPUBLIC , and that is that.