Sir: There are over 85 dead and more than 140 injured after a suicide attack on a church, the All Saints Church, located in Swati Gate, Peshawar. According to reports, around 400 to 500 people attended the Sunday mass. At around 11:40 am, the worshippers were ready to come out when two suicide attackers entered the church and exploded themselves. An eyewitness said, “When the priest ended the mass, we started leaving when, suddenly, there were two explosions. There were bodies everywhere around the church and holes in the walls. The injured were shouting and screaming. It was chaos.” The police rushed to the church. People were shifted to Lady Reading Hospital and other hospitals. For hours, there was not enough medical staff and the doctors were not present on duty to provide medical attention. Senior police officials visited the location, collected evidence and sent samples to the forensic lab for identification of the attackers. They claimed that there was sufficient security but that it was impossible to stop a suicide attacker.
The church members claim that the police had not provided sufficient security despite repeated requests. The church had its own security as well but the attackers managed to penetrate it and carry out the explosions. The Christians from the Catholic Church, located near the All Saints Church, rushed to help the injured and the community started its protests against the government for not protecting the minorities. The protestors were aggressive and demanded the authorities to act; there have been protests across Pakistan against the incident. The Bishops Council of Pakistan and the Catholic Church have announced the closure of educational institutions for three days to mourn the incident. Life For All Pakistan strongly condemns the brutal attack, a sad day among many that sees Pakistan in the grip of terrorism. The minorities are insecure due to the government’s policies and so we request Christians across Pakistan to protest in peace and to not provoke violence. Our faith teaches us peace, to forgive those who trespass against us. It is time to unite and pray for the grieving families.
The war against terrorism has been forced upon us — it has become our war now. It is not time to think about any sort of dialogue with people who support such barbaric acts. The government should announce an immediate end to the talks’ prospects. A plan that goes beyond condemnation is needed now.
XAVIER PATRAS WILLIAM
Via e-mail