KARACHI, 30 May — A hard-line group again called for a nationwide strike from today to protest the killing of its leader and warned that anyone venturing out of their homes did so at their “own risk”.
The Sunni Tehrik staged a strike on Monday, when the port city of Karachi and other cities in Sindh remained shut as fear of violence kept most people indoors. One person was killed and a number of vehicles were torched during the shutdown
“We have given the call for an indefinite strike from today. The strike will be tougher than Monday’s. Anybody who goes out of his home will do so at his own risk,” a Sunni Tehrik spokesman said.
He added the group was demanding the arrest of the killers of Sunni Tehrik leader Saleem Qadri, who was gunned down with five others on May 18, and the release of some 400 of the group’s activists arrested since the weekend.
Government officials have promised a tough response to the strikes, which paralyze economic activity, saying they refused to allow Sunni Tehrik hold the country to ransom.
