Peshawar blast claims 14 lives

An apparently targeted attack killed at least 14 people and injured another 18 when a remote-controlled explosive device went off in Mattni Bazaar in the suburbs of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Political Agent of North Waziristan Agency, Hashim Gull accompanied by his son, a brother and driver had come to the area to get his car repaired when he was targeted by unidentified militants, police officials said.

He said that the explosive devices were planed to a pick-up truck parked near a workshop in Mattni Bazaar. According to the Bomb Disposal Squad, around 30kgs to 40kgs of explosives were used to make the bomb.

Hukam Khan, an official of the BDS said, “Since both vehicles were destroyed, it is difficult to say which of the two had the bomb”.

The massive explosion caused fear and panic among the residents, who rushed to the site of the blast to search for their relatives. Some portion of the workshop and two other vehicles were also severely damaged in the explosion.

Following the incident, Edhi ambulances and Rescue 1122 officials rushed to the area and shifted the bodies to Lady Reading Hospital. Angry relatives of the bomb victims later staged a protest outside the hospital against a lack of ambulances for rescue operations. They also exchanged harsh words with police inside the hospital.

Police and Bomb Disposal Squad officials cordoned off the blast site and launched a search operation to arrest suspects in the area.

Talking to the media, SP Khursheed Khan said police had arrested 40 suspects from the site and would apprehend those responsible for the violence.

Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain and Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour condemned the incident and called it an inhuman act by terrorists. They said the terrorists could not falter the government’s resolve in the fight against terrorism by targeting innocent people.

Although nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, the Taliban militants have been carrying out similar suicide attacks and bombings in Peshawar from several years.

According to the statistics, such attacks have killed more than 5,000 people in the last five years while 35,000 people have been killed as a result of terrorism since the 9/11 attacks.

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Posted by Faisal Farooq on Sep 1 2012. Filed under Latest News, National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.