Home dept orders in-jail trials of Safoora massacre accused

Karachi
The Sindh Home Department on Tuesday ordered court authorities to conduct an in-jail trial of the Safoora bus massacre accused including Saad Aziz alias Tin Tin, Tahir Hussain Minhas alias Saaien, Azhar Ishrat, Asadur Rehman and Hafiz Nasir alias Yasir.
According to the notification issued, the case was sensitive and security concerns pressed for the case to be heard in a court housed inside the premises of the Central Prison.
The accused had on May 13 attacked a bus carrying members of the Ismaili community, resulting int he deaths of 44 people including women and children. Around six survived their injuries.
Aziz was also accused of murdering two men, Muhammad Khan and Mustansar Abbad, besides also being said to be behind the attack against Jinah Medical and Dental College Vice Principal Debra as well as the murder of The Second Floor (T2f) Sabeen Mahmud on April 23.

Proclaimed offenders
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) declared six activists of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) as proclaimed offenders after they could not be presented to the court in any of the hearings pertaining to the murder of a policeman.
Ubaid alias Ubaid K2 and five other activists of the party Amir Meero, Asif, Javed Shahpuri, Shahif Afroz, Faheem alias Fahmeem Kankata and Javed are alleged to have targeted and killed a man named Imran in the Soldier Bazaar station in 2000.
The court had earlier issued non-bailabe arrest warrants for the accused.
The court declared them proclaimed offender and ordered for all their movable and immovable property to be confiscated. Accused Ubaid was under detention in several cases pertaining to extortion, target killings and other criminal activities.