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In Pakistan Church
| BAHAWALPUR, Pakistan (Reuters)
- Women keened over the bodies of 15 Christians lying in pools of blood
in a Pakistani church Sunday after masked gunmen on motorcycles drew up,
shot dead a police guard and sprayed the congregation with Kalashnikov
fire. Christians feared they could become targets if unrest broke out in Muslim Pakistan over opposition to the U.S. attacks on neighboring Afghanistan's ruling Muslim Taliban militia. ``We are investigating and we will take action against whosoever is involved, no matter what their religion,'' Senior Superintendent of Police ArifIkram said. ``This is terrorism,'' he told Reuters. Police sent reinforcements to town and the army patrolled the streets as Christians called a protest strike. As some 70 Christians gathered for regular Sunday morning services, six men on three motorcycles rode up to Saint Dominic's Church and pulled AK47 assault rifles out of their bags, one witness said. Shouting ``Graveyard of Christians -- Pakistan and Afghanistan,'' and ``This is just a start,'' they raced up to the church while the guards were asleep and opened fire, killing one. Five worshippers were wounded, four critically, doctors said. PLANNED ATTACK Four gunmen entered the church chanting ``Allah-u-Akbar'' (God is Greater) while two waited outside to shoot anyone who tried to flee, a witness said. Police have been posted at Christian churches since the September 11 attacks on the United States. These have been blamed on Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, who is sheltering in Afghanistan under the protection of the hard-line Taliban. ``The method used and the inhuman tactics clearly indicate involvement of trained terrorists,'' President Pervez Musharraf said in statement expressing his shock and sorrow. ``I would...like to assure everyone that we will track down the culprits and bring them to justice,'' he said. Christians account for about one percent of Pakistan's 120 million population. Pope John Paul condemned the attack as evil. ``It is a security failure,'' Pakistan's minister for minorities affairs, S.K. Tressler, told Reuters, adding that the Christians of the area had been receiving threats for the past few days. ``They (the administration) should have properly reacted to these threats,'' Tressler, a Christian, said. BODIES IN BLOOD, BULLETS IN WALLS Lying sprawled on the floor of the church, its walls scarred with bullet holes, were the bodies of seven women, two children aged three and five, and the pastor, Father Emmanual. Saint Dominic's is a Catholic church but a Protestant service was being held at the time of the attack. The gunmen, who fled, killed 13 in the church and three died later in hospital. On the wall above the bodies, a biblical inscription was painted in red: ``We want peace, order and harmony.'' Thirteen of the victims were from the same family. As night fell relatives wailed over the shrouded bodies still lying in the church. The funerals are set for Monday. ``We have nothing to do with what's going on in Afghanistan. We are innocent people,'' cried one woman. ``This is terrorism related to Afghanistan,'' said Sharif Azhar, a member of the church's organizing committee, adding that local authorities had been informed of a recent stream of threatening phone calls and letters against the Christian community. Pakistan's hard-line Islamic groups are opposed to the military government's support for the U.S. air strikes in Afghanistan. It was the first such attack on Christians in the region, he said. Christians from about 100 villages blocked a main road to protest against the attack. ``We are not supporting attacks on Afghanistan. We have always supported the Muslims of Pakistan in their causes. We have nothing to do with Afghanistan. Why are we being targeted?'' said one member of the congregation, Piyarey Lal. |
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