Bomb blast in Peshawar kills 40, injures 80

At least 40 people‚ including women and children‚ were killed and nearly 80 injured in a powerful bomb blast outside a police station in Peshawar on Sunday, police said.

An official of the main hospital said that six children and three women are among the dead.

Police said that 13 members of a family were among the slain people. They had arrived in the city for a wedding ceremony of a relative.

Several shops and vehicles caught fire after the blast at the crowded Qissa Khawani Bazaar in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, witnesses said.

Police said the bomb‚ placed in a vehicle‚ was triggered through a remote-controlled device, Commissioner Peshawar, Sahibzada Anis said.

Head of of the Bomb Disposal Squad, Shafqat Malik, said nearly 200 kilogram explosives were used in the blast. 

He told reporters at the blast site the whole car was converted into a bomb to cause collateral damage. He said preliminary investigation suggests that the bomb was carried out with the help of a remote controlled device.

Witnesses said they saw thick smoke in the air shortly after the blast rocked the city.

Police said all those killed were civilians who had been busy in shopping for the coming Eid festival. People from other areas had also arrived in Peshawar for shopping because of official holiday on Sunday.

No group claimed responsibility for the deadly attack, the second in the city in a week. Taliban denied involvement.

The blast occurred near a Church which was also attacked by two suicide bomber last Sunday and killed over 80 people, mostly Christians.

Another blast in the bus of government employees killed and injured dozens near Peshawar on Friday. 

The government suspects the Taliban could be behind the blasts in the crowded markets and civilian areas to pressurize it for the talks.

The series of deadly blasts in recent days have spoiled environment for the proposed talks between the government and the Taliban militants. 

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Posted by Tahir Khan on Sep 29 2013. Filed under Latest News, 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.