This story is narrated by the friend of a cousin of mine, who both lost a loved one:
Pakistanis recount horror of suicide attacks
ALI MUSTAFA, DOCTOR, ISLAMABAD
Ali Mustafa lost his best friend during the attack on a mosque in Rawalpindi on 4 December.
Me and Bilal have been together for the last 19 years. We were together in everything, we were like brothers.
He was studying electro-engineering in London and came back home to get married. The wedding was planned for 15 December.
You can imagine the grief of his parents and his fiancee. I visit them every day. I think it's been a particularly difficult time for his father, who witnessed his death.
Bilal was in the mosque during Friday prayers when it was attacked by gunmen.
He was there with his five-year-old nephew. He covered his nephew with his body in order to protect him from the gunfire. He was shot and died on the spot. The child escaped with a few minor injuries.
When the number of victims in such attacks gets reported in the news, it doesn't really reach your heart. But these people are real people, they are not just numbers. I lost someone I love, he is not here any more and it's unbearable at times.
It's such a loss, not just for the family, but for the country. He was an exceptional human being, a professional who had so much potential.
'Horrendous year'
The situation these days is horrifying. In the past, when we would hear about bomb attacks, it would be in remote places, far away from the big cities.
But when it hits home, that's when you really start to get worried.
What we are experiencing is similar to post-traumatic stress disorder. You are wary every time you go out. There's so much fear around here, people have stopped going out in the evening for fun.
I work here in the government hospital and every time a bomb goes off, I am the first one to receive the injured. You can't not be affected, it hits you hard every time.
We are thinking about shifting the whole family to the UK. My father once worked as a doctor in Britain and we are all British nationals. But there are many people who don't have that option, who are stuck here.
We are told that it is the Taliban doing this as a revenge for the army operation in Swat and Waziristan. Some people say it's the fault of America, others think that India is behind it. There are even those who blame the Israeli lobby. There are many conspiracy theories.
I am an educated person, but I fail to understand why this is happening. The Western media says that the Taliban are Islamic militants. That's wrong. They have nothing to do with Islam. There is no provision in Islam for killing innocent people.
The last couple of years have been horrendous and I have very little hope that things will get better. Our government is the worst kind of government you can imagine.
Our politicians are corrupt politicians. All they are concerned about is making money and enforcing the American agenda. The war on terror is not our war and it shouldn't be our war.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8408684.stm
Pakistanis recount horror of suicide attacks
ALI MUSTAFA, DOCTOR, ISLAMABAD
Ali Mustafa lost his best friend during the attack on a mosque in Rawalpindi on 4 December.
Me and Bilal have been together for the last 19 years. We were together in everything, we were like brothers.
He was studying electro-engineering in London and came back home to get married. The wedding was planned for 15 December.
You can imagine the grief of his parents and his fiancee. I visit them every day. I think it's been a particularly difficult time for his father, who witnessed his death.
Bilal was in the mosque during Friday prayers when it was attacked by gunmen.
He was there with his five-year-old nephew. He covered his nephew with his body in order to protect him from the gunfire. He was shot and died on the spot. The child escaped with a few minor injuries.
When the number of victims in such attacks gets reported in the news, it doesn't really reach your heart. But these people are real people, they are not just numbers. I lost someone I love, he is not here any more and it's unbearable at times.
It's such a loss, not just for the family, but for the country. He was an exceptional human being, a professional who had so much potential.
'Horrendous year'
The situation these days is horrifying. In the past, when we would hear about bomb attacks, it would be in remote places, far away from the big cities.
But when it hits home, that's when you really start to get worried.
What we are experiencing is similar to post-traumatic stress disorder. You are wary every time you go out. There's so much fear around here, people have stopped going out in the evening for fun.
I work here in the government hospital and every time a bomb goes off, I am the first one to receive the injured. You can't not be affected, it hits you hard every time.
We are thinking about shifting the whole family to the UK. My father once worked as a doctor in Britain and we are all British nationals. But there are many people who don't have that option, who are stuck here.
We are told that it is the Taliban doing this as a revenge for the army operation in Swat and Waziristan. Some people say it's the fault of America, others think that India is behind it. There are even those who blame the Israeli lobby. There are many conspiracy theories.
I am an educated person, but I fail to understand why this is happening. The Western media says that the Taliban are Islamic militants. That's wrong. They have nothing to do with Islam. There is no provision in Islam for killing innocent people.
The last couple of years have been horrendous and I have very little hope that things will get better. Our government is the worst kind of government you can imagine.
Our politicians are corrupt politicians. All they are concerned about is making money and enforcing the American agenda. The war on terror is not our war and it shouldn't be our war.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8408684.stm
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