Funeral prayers in absentia held for victims of Kandahar attack

PESHAWAR: The funeral prayer in absentia for the Kandahar attack victims was offered at the Bacha Khan Markaz here on Friday. Awami National Party (ANP) general secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain, provincial general secretary Sardar Hussain Babak and provincial deputy general secretary Aimal Wali Khan along with officials of the Afghan Consulate in Peshawar were present at the funeral.

After the funeral, Mian Iftikhar said that terrorist attack in Kandahar was an attempt to sabotage the elections in Afghanistan. He asked the Afghan Taliban to take advantage of the current situations and initiate the dialogue process to bring peace to the war-torn country.

Mian Iftikhar said that Pakistan and Afghanistan should jointly take steps to fight against terrorists in the region. Talking to reporters after the funeral prayer, he praised the Afghan government for not postponing the elections after such a huge tragedy. Afghan Consul General Hashim Niazi and other officials were also present on the occasion. The ANP leader said that his party was in favour of peace talks and added that his party also utilized the option of negotiation that restored peace in Malakand. He lamented that Pakhtuns on both sides of the Durand Line were being targeted and urged all parties to stop the bloodshed. Also, ANP president Asfandyar Wali Khan termed the attack as an assault on the peace efforts. He said that they were supporting their Afghan brothers in this situation.

Through a statement issued here, he said the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan had been facing the brunt of terrorism since long and added that ANP being the target of terrorists can feel their grief.