Church Condemns Deadly Attacks

August 16, 2011: The Catholic Church in Pakistan has condemned Independence Day attacks which killed at least 21 people.Some 15 people were killed and 23 injured in a blast at a hotel in Dera Allah Yar, about 350 kilometers southwest of Quetta on Sunday. Another six people died the same day amid ongoing violence in Karachi. Baloch Liberation Tigers, a separatist organization, claimed responsibility for the blast and said they would target anyone marking Independence Day. Karachi, Pakistan’s commercial hub, which has been in the grip of ethnic and sectarian killings for years, has seen a sharp increase in the numbers of murders since last month. Father Emmanuel Yousaf Mani, national director of the Catholic Bishops National Commission for Justice and Peace, said the killings are an attempt to demoralize the nation. “We condemn violence whatever day it is. The extremists targeted innocent people enjoying their Independence Day — they are trying to make people slaves to their own agendas,” he said.