PM Imran condemns terrorist attack at mosque in New Zealand
Imran Khan said the incident has reaffirmed our claim that terrorism does not have any religion.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday strongly condemned the terrorist attack at a mosque in Christchurch which left around 49 Muslims dead.
In a tweet, he attributed such terror acts to the post 9/11 Islamophobia under which the 1.3 billion Muslims of the world are being blamed for any act of terrorism by a single Muslim individual.
The Prime Minister said the attack is also deliberate attempt to demonize legitimate Muslim political struggles.
Imran Khan said the incident has reaffirmed our claim that terrorism does not have any religion.
On the other hand, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also condemned the terrorist attack in New Zealand in strongest terms.
He expressed grief and shock over the incident and expressed condolences for the victims.
The foreign minister said about three hundred Pakistanis are residing in Christchurch and there are no reports of any Pakistani casualty in the despicable incident.
A terrorist armed with semi-automatic weapons rampaged through two mosques in the quiet New Zealand city of Christchurch during afternoon prayers Friday, killing 49 worshippers and wounding dozens more.
The attack, thought to be the deadliest against Muslims in the West in modern times, was immediately dubbed terrorism by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, as she guided a shocked nation on one of its "darkest days."
The attacker live-streamed footage of him going room-to-room, victim to victim, shooting the wounded from close range as they struggled to crawl away.
A 28-year-old Australian-born man has been arrested and charged with murder. He is set to appear at the Christchurch District Court early Saturday.
The chief suspect allegedly published a racist "manifesto" on social media before the attack, featuring conspiracy theories about Europeans being displaced, and details of two years of preparation and radicalisation leading up to the shootings.
The attack has shocked the local Muslim population, many of whom had come to New Zealand as refugees.
The Ardern government has been vocal in its support for opening the doors to those suffering from wars in Syria, Afghanistan and beyond.
The Bangladesh cricket team -- which had been in Christchurch for a test match and was about to go into the mosque when the attack happened -- all escaped without injury.
"They are safe. But they are mentally shocked. We have asked the team to stay confined in the hotel," he told AFP.
