Sentenced to death two men who burned 264 people in Pakistan

Two men were sentenced to death on Tuesday for arson in a garment factory in Karachi, southern Pakistan, in 2012, killing more than 260 people.

The two defendants had set fire to the "Ali Enterprises" factory on September 11, 2012, after its owners refused to pay bribes, according to the court.

The two men will be executed by hanging until death, according to the ruling of the Anti-Terrorism Court in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city and home to more than 20 million people.

Attorney General Sajid Mahmoud Sheikh told AFP that "the court has sentenced them to 264 death sentences for killing so many people," considering that these sentences are "very appropriate."

Both men belonged to the MQM, a party that had dominated Karachi for decades.

The movement is accused of assassinating dissidents and extorting companies, until the regime’s forces launched an operation in 2013 that significantly weakened its control over the city.

On Tuesday, however, the court acquitted one representative of the movement and three other persons in this case.

The fire is one of the worst industrial disasters in the history of Pakistan.

The fire exposed the poor working conditions of textile workers in Pakistan and a problem faced by local industrialists, who tend to often sacrifice the safety of their workers in order to export more.

The dilapidated factory building was nearly full, its windows were covered with metal mesh, and its stairs were covered with goods at the time of the fire.

There was no emergency exit and insufficient ventilation at the facility, according to Pakistani authorities and staff.

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