An 18-year-old Hazara youth was killed and two others were injured in a targeted attack by unidentified gunmen near Quetta, the capital of Pakistan's Balochistan province. The incident occurred on Friday evening, October 2, when a group of young men were fired upon.
Abdul Karim Malakhail, a journalist for Afghanistan International in Quetta, reported that the youths were residents of Hazara Town and were attacked while returning home from an outing in the Bolan area. The victim was identified as Mustafa.
Balochistan police have initiated an investigation into the incident, but the identity and motive of the attackers remain unknown. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
This attack is the latest in a series of sectarian and targeted assaults against the Hazara community in Quetta that has spanned more than two decades. The city's Hazaras have repeatedly been the victims of deadly violence.
Among the bloodiest of these attacks were a mosque bombing in July 2003 that killed at least 53 people, and two major bombings in January and Feuary 2013 that claimed the lives of at least 180 Hazaras.
Human Rights Watch has previously stated that these persistent attacks have severely restricted the Hazara community's freedom of movement, economic activities, and access to education in Quetta.
Source: Afghanistan International
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