Ban condemns deadly attack on Shia mosque in Pakistan during Friday prayers

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemns an attack on a Shia mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan, during Friday prayers that killed some 19 people – including Mr. Naveed Abbas, a Pakistan national working with the UN Department of Safety and Security – and injured dozens of others.

The attack comes just two weeks after nearly 60 people were killed in another assault on a Shia mosque in southern Pakistan, which the UN chief also condemned.

“There is no justification for such crimes,” Mr. Ban stressed in a statement issued today by his spokesperson in New York.

According to the statement, the Secretary-General is deeply dismayed the repeated targeting of innocent people based on their religious beliefs and places of worship.

Mr. Ban called on Pakistani authorities to bring the perpetrators swiftly to justice. He also urges them to redouble their efforts “to protect religious and ethnic minorities and to combat terrorism in all its forms.”

The Secretary-General in the statement extends his heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families, the Government and the people of Pakistan.