Daily Times

MUZAFFARABAD: Unidentified people on Wednesday opened fire on a Shia scholar and his wife at Rawani Bridge on Muzaffarbad-Chakothi road, police said.

Deputy Inspector General Sardar Gulafraz told reporters that Allama Tasawar Jawadi was travelling on his motorcycle along with his wife from Muzaffarabad to Garhi Dupata when unidentified people riding a car opened fire on them. The couple was shifted to Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in a critical condition. Hospital sources said Jawadi received more than eight bullets in his neck and lower body and doctors were making effort to save him. His wife was also seriously injured and was under treatment. Soon after the incident, hundreds of protesters gathered at Almadar Chowk in the middle of the city and burnt tires and blocked the road

which created traffic jams for hours and normal life was badly disturbed. Police said they were investigating the incident and attackers would be arrested as soon as possible. The motive behind the attack was yet to be ascertained. Shia scholars and academics come under attack on a regular basis as they are a soft target for the terrorists in Pakistan.

In January, at least 24 people, mostly Shias, were killed and nearly 70 others sustained injuries in a blast in Parachinar, capital city of Kurram Agency. Hours after the incident, the banned terrorist outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the blast. The TTP spokesman had said it was a revenge for taking sides with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad.