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Gunmen Kill 4 Members Of Shi'ite Family In Pakistan


Pakistani security personnel inspect a bullet-riddled vehicle belonging to a Shi'ite Muslim family after an ambush by gunmen on a highway near Quetta, the capital of southwestren Balochistan Province on July 19.
Pakistani security personnel inspect a bullet-riddled vehicle belonging to a Shi'ite Muslim family after an ambush by gunmen on a highway near Quetta, the capital of southwestren Balochistan Province on July 19.

Gunmen have shot and killed four members of a Shi’ite family and their driver in Pakistan's southwestern province of Baluchistan, officials said.

Local police officials said the drive-by shooting took place on July 19 in the town of Mastung, about 75 kilometers south of the city of Quetta, Baluchistan's provincial capital.

"The Shi'ites were targeted because of their faith," said Mastung police chief Ghazanfar Ali was quoted as saying by Reuters.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Similar attacks in the past have been claimed by Sunni extremist groups who view Shi’ites as infidels who deserve to die.

Islamist militants have killed thousands of people in Pakistan since the early 2000s.

Baluchistan has also been the scene of a low-level insurgency by separatists demanding more autonomy and a greater share in the region's resources.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP

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