Father, son who died in Chinese consulate attack laid to rest in Quetta

QUETTA: Two visa applicants – Niaz Muhammad and his son Zahir Shah – who lost their lives in a foiled terror attack on the Chinese consulate in Karachi, were laid to rest in Quetta on Saturday. 

The funeral prayers of Muhammad, 56, and his son, 35, were offered in the Eastern bypass area of the provincial capital. A large number of people attended their funeral prayers.

Niaz Muhammad is survived by his wife, seven daughters and three sons.

The duo, who hailed from Quetta’s Pashtun Abad area, was at the Chinese consulate in Karachi to apply for visa on Friday morning when three terrorists attempted to enter the premises of the consulate.

Security forces intercepted the attackers at check post as they lobbed grenades at the guards and resorted to heavy firing.

The forces thwarted the attack on the consulate, killing all the three attackers in an hour-long gun battle.

Two policemen – ASI Ashraf Daud, 40 and Constable Amir Khan, 30, were martyred, while a security guard, 40, was injured.

Luckily, all the diplomats and staff inside the consulate remained unhurt and secure.

A separatist group, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which is against the Chinese development projects in Pakistan, claimed responsibility for the attack.