Quetta Suicide Bombing (August 2016)
The Quetta suicide bombing on August 8, 2016, was a significant terrorist attack in Pakistan, occurring outside the Civil Hospital where lawyers had gathered to mourn the assassination of Bilal Anwar Kasi, the president of the Baluchistan Bar Association. The attack resulted in the deaths of at least seventy individuals, predominantly legal professionals, and left over one hundred injured. Responsibility for the bombing was claimed by both a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, and the Islamic State (ISIS), highlighting the complex landscape of terrorism in the region.
This incident occurred amidst a pattern of escalating violence in Pakistan, particularly in Baluchistan, which has been a hotspot for various terrorist activities due to its proximity to the Afghan border. The bombing not only targeted the legal community, often critical of extremist groups, but also raised concerns about national security and the influence of multiple militant organizations operating in the area. Following the attack, there were discussions regarding potential foreign involvement, specifically claims about India’s intelligence agency, although these lacked substantiated evidence. The Quetta bombing underscored the ongoing challenges Pakistan faces in combating terrorism and securing the safety of its citizens.
Subject Terms
Quetta Suicide Bombing (August 2016)
Date: August 8, 2016
Place: Quetta, Pakistan
Summary
The Quetta suicide bombing of 2016 was a terrorist attack that occurred outside of a hospital in the Pakistani city of Quetta on August 8 that killed at least seventy individuals, most of whom were lawyers or members of the legal profession, and wounded more than one hundred. Both a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban and the Islamist terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack.
Key Events
- August 8, 2016—Unknown suicide bomber attacks Civil Hospital in Quetta, killing several lawyers gathered in protest and mourning.
- October 24, 2016—Terrorists attack a police training college in Quetta, killing more than sixty people and injuring several others.
Status
As of October 2016, authorities in Pakistan had not determined which terrorist organization was responsible for the August 8 attack on Quetta’s government hospital. According to an article in the local Express Tribune, the Pakistani government was investigating a theory that India’s primary foreign intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), may have collaborated with terrorists in the hospital attack. Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria claimed that the RAW was known to be involved in terrorist activities in Baluchistan (or Balochistan) and Karachi, and claimed to have proof from the recent arrest of an Indian naval officer; however, no details were presented to support the claim.
On October 24, in the first major terrorist incident since the August 8 bombing, three terrorists attacked the Baluchistan police training center in Quetta, killing at least sixty cadets. ISIS claimed to have orchestrated the attack, and the government believed they had assistance from the Pakistani terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which has been linked to attacks on the city’s Shiite population. Authorities were uncertain whether any of the attackers involved in the October 24 attack were also involved in the August 8 hospital attack.
In-Depth Overview
Between December 2014 and March 2016, more than five hundred people were killed in terrorist attacks in Pakistan, according to the New York Times. Terrorist threats facing the nation include ISIS, which has been active in Pakistan since the Pakistani government began cooperating with US and allied forces to combat ISIS near the border of Pakistan. In addition, a local Taliban organization known as Tehrik-i-Taliban has been active in the nation since 2007, primarily in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The province of Baluchistan in the southwestern part of the nation and its capital, Quetta, have frequently been subjected to terrorism due to the province’s proximity to the Afghan border. In 2013, a string of bombings in Baluchistan targeted Shiite Muslims, with a market attack in February killing more than one hundred people and marking one of the deadliest single terrorist incidents in the nation’s history.
On the morning of August 8, 2016, Bilal Anwar Kasi, the president of the Baluchistan Bar Association, was shot and killed by unknown assailants, and his body was taken to Civil Hospital in Quetta, where a large group of lawyers, accompanied by members of the press, gathered to pay their respects. In the afternoon, an explosive device was detonated in the middle of the crowd at the entrance to the emergency ward of the hospital. More than one hundred people were injured in the attack, and, as casualties mounted, the government reported at least seventy had been killed, with some sources claiming that there had been as many as ninety casualties.
In the immediate wake of the incident, a representative of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter faction of Tehrik-i-Taliban, sent e-mails to journalists claiming responsibility for the attack. Identifying himself as Ehsanullah Ehsan, the individual claimed that Jamaat-ul-Ahrar had also engineered the murder of Kasi shortly before bombing the hospital. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which Pakistani officials believe is headquartered in the Nangarhar Province, has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks in Pakistan, including the March 2016 bombing of a children’s park in Lahore. However, in a phenomenon that has become increasingly common in Pakistan and other areas where multiple terrorist groups are known to operate, ISIS also released a statement through its Amaq news agency claiming responsibility for the attack. Authorities were uncertain whether ISIS was claiming to have worked with Jamaat-ul-Ahrar or was claiming to have orchestrated the attack independently.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif gave a statement condemning the attacks and pledging the government’s commitment to continue fighting all terrorist organizations. General Raheel Sharif of the Pakistan Army convened a meeting of senior military officials in the afternoon of the attack to discuss additional security measures. Some speculated that the attack was planned to strike at Pakistan’s legal community, as Kasi and allies had been outspoken critics of the Taliban and other radical Islamist groups. Police reports also indicated that two members of the press at the scene to cover the murder of Kasi were killed in the attack.
Key Figures
Ehsanullah Ehsan: Name given by an alleged spokesperson of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar who contacted the press to take responsibility for the attack.
Nawaz Sharif: Prime minister of Pakistan.
Raheel Sharif: Pakistan Army general.
Bibliography
Iqbal, A., & Constable, P. (2016, August 8). Scores of attorneys among the dead in suicide bombing in southwestern Pakistan. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/suicide-bomber-targets-pakistans-lawyers-kills-at-least-53/2016/08/08/cce19344-5d4d-11e6-8e45-477372e89d78‗story.html
Khan, W. S., & Yusufzai, M. (2016, August 8). Quetta bombing: Dozens killed in attack targeting Pakistan hospital. NBC News. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/quetta-bombing-dozens-killed-attack-targeting-hospital-n625126
Masood, S. (2016, August 8). Suicide bomber kills dozens at Pakistani hospital in Quetta. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/world/asia/quetta-pakistan-blast-hospital.html
Moore, J. (2016, August 9). Taliban and ISIS both claim Quetta hospital suicide bombing. Newsweek. Retrieved from http://www.newsweek.com/taliban-isis-both-claim-quetta-pakistan-hospital-suicide-bombing-488653
Siddiqui, T., & Dehghan, S. K. (2016, August 8). Pakistan: Dozens dead as bomb hits mourners at Quetta hospital. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/aug/08/pakistan-dozens-feared-dead-as-bomb-targets-mourners-at-hospital
Yousaf, K. (2016, August 12). Islamabad hints at RAW’s involvement in Quetta carnage. The Express Tribune. Retrieved from http://tribune.com.pk/story/1160645/quetta-carnage-islamabad-hints-raws-involvement/