Shia lawyer killed in northeast Lahore

A senior Shia lawyer has been killed in an attack by unknown gunmen in Pakistan’s northeastern city of Lahore, Press TV reports. Shakir Ali Rizvi was gunned down on Friday while he was on his way to Lahore’s High Court. Lawyers in Lahore have announced they would boycott courts on Friday in protest against the recent killings of Shia lawyers. On October 12, another Shia Lawyer, Mirza Waqar Hussain, was targeted in the southern port city of Karachi and later died of his gunshot wounds. Over the past months, pro-Taliban militants have killed hundreds of Shia Muslims in various parts of Pakistan. The country’s Shia leaders have called on the government to form a judicial commission to investigate the bloodshed. The killing of Shias has caused an international outrage, with rights groups and regional countries expressing concern over the ongoing deadly violence. Human Rights Watch issued a statement in September asking the Pakistani government to “urgently act” to protect the Shia Muslims in Pakistan.