AFTER reading a post about Israel’s aggressive attacks in Gaza on the BBC Facebook page, I took a look at the comments. There were many voicing anger over the grave situation.

Not much to my surprise, I found a comment (of a Muslim) condemning the killing of Palestinian Muslims by Jews. The comment, which caught my attention, was that we should take a look at Pakistan where Muslims are killed by Muslims.

The comment was bitter but true. Being drowned in embarrassment I quit the page and began to think about the sectarian violence escalating in the country day by day.

Malala Yousafzai has been enjoying the limelight for long, but there is another innocent girl who was attacked on her way to school, but she is not being discussed as widely as Malala.

I am talking about Mehzar Zehra, a 12-year-old girl who fell victim to sectarian violence about half-a-month ago. The assailants attacked Nazar Abbas (45) and his daughter, Mehzar, when they were going to school.

The man died on the spot while his daughter is still fighting for her life. How many of us have heard about Mehzar Zehra earlier?

The common man cannot be blamed for not knowing about the little girl’s condition. It’s the media that should create awareness about it. If people are unaware of the miseries faced by Mehzar, Nazar Abbas, Dr Iqbal Hasan and his wife Dr Kaneez Fatima, Agha Aftab Haider Jaffery, Mohsin Rizvi and 600 other Shia Muslims killed this year, then it is the media that should be questioned.

Sectarian attacks are taking place everywhere. Shia clerics are holding peaceful protests at the Numaish, Karachi. If Muslims regard each other as brothers, then we all should join the protests and condemn the targeted killings. Let’s not be silent.

TANZEEL HASSAN

DAWN.COM