Karachi Carnage

The Carnage in Karachi was a double feature. First a suicide bomber blew himself up in the midst of a massive mourning procession during the Islamic month of Muharram. Such processions are taken out by the Shia sect of Islam so the immediate thoughts were that this was a sectarian attack. Such attacks were rampant in the 90’s and the last one was over five years ago. The suicide bombing was followed by massive arson attacks in some of the busiest markets of Karachi. Colossal damage resulted from the deliberately started fires and over 25 buildings were reduced to ashes. The fires were started within minutes of the blast indicating an obvious linkage. This second event shifted focus from the sectarian attack theory.

Karachi is Pakistan’s economic hub but like Mumbai it is a resilient city with a strong business orientation. Karachiites are used to violence though by no means indifferent to it. The twin attacks are a severe blow to economic activity—already at a low level because of uncertain internal security. The social unrest and pressures created by the attack are also serious. The TTP-(Tehrik Taliban Pakistan) has accepted responsibility for the attack and by doing so has indicated its capacity in Karachi.

This raises the question that what exactly is the capacity of the TTP and whether the attacks are part of a broader strategy to destabilize Pakistan from within. The attacks cover a wide spectrum of methodology. Suicide bombing is the easiest and preferred mode of attack and there seems to be an endless supply of young men willing to undertake such missions. Several recent attacks had been partial successes because the would-be bomber failed to get full access and blew himself up at the entry point. This explains the follow-up arson attacks in Karachi. This may also be the pattern of attacks in the future.

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