Members of Pakistan's minority Shi'ite Muslim community have staged demonstrations in several cities, demanding authorities crack down on militants blamed for deadly attacks targeting Shi'a.
The January 23 rallies follow the deaths of 24 Shi'ite pilgrims whose bus was bombed two days earlier in the southwestern province of Balochistan following a visit to neighboring Iran.
Members of the mostly Shi'a ethnic Hazara community began their protest on January 22 in the Baloch capital, Quetta.
Relatives of the victims have vowed not to bury their dead until security forces take action against Sunni Muslim extremist groups such as Lashkar-e Jhangvi, which has claimed responsibility for the bus attack.
Lashkar-e Jhangvi condemns Shi'a as Islamic heretics who should be killed.
The French news agency AFP says Shi'ite demonstrations were also held in Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi.
The January 23 rallies follow the deaths of 24 Shi'ite pilgrims whose bus was bombed two days earlier in the southwestern province of Balochistan following a visit to neighboring Iran.
Members of the mostly Shi'a ethnic Hazara community began their protest on January 22 in the Baloch capital, Quetta.
Relatives of the victims have vowed not to bury their dead until security forces take action against Sunni Muslim extremist groups such as Lashkar-e Jhangvi, which has claimed responsibility for the bus attack.
Lashkar-e Jhangvi condemns Shi'a as Islamic heretics who should be killed.
The French news agency AFP says Shi'ite demonstrations were also held in Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi.
