BOMB BLAST KILLS 29 IN NW PAKISTAN
PESHAWAR, Pakistan – A government official says the death toll in a bomb blast in northwest Pakistan's tribal belt has reached 29.
Jawed Khan says the attack occurred at a mosque in the Aka Khel area of Khyber tribal region. More than 50 people were wounded.
Jawed Khan says the attack occurred at a mosque in the Aka Khel area of Khyber tribal region. More than 50 people were wounded.
- Earlier reports said the Thursday explosion occurred in the Orakzai area at a cattle market. The two areas border one another, and the market is apparently near the mosque.
- Pakistan has suffered numerous bombings over the last few months, many of them apparently in retaliation for an army operation against the Pakistani Taliban in the South Waziristan tribal area.
- No group has claimed responsibility for the latest attack.
30 PEOPLE KILLED WHEN BOMBER HITS KARACHI PROCESSION
At least 30 people have been killed after a suicide bomber struck a procession of Shia Muslims in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi, according to police sources.The explosion struck on Monday as Shia worshippers marked Ashoura, the holiest event on the Shia Muslim calendar.
Police sources told Al Jazeera that at least 80 people were injured in the blast, with many of those in a critical condition.
Source: Al Jazeera
Police sources told Al Jazeera that at least 80 people were injured in the blast, with many of those in a critical condition.
- The attack sparked riots in Karachi with angry mourners throwing stones at ambulances, torching cars and shops and firing bullets into the air.
- "A deliberate attempt seems to be afoot by the extremists to turn the fight against militants into a sectarian clash and make the people fight against one another," Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan's president, said in a statement.
- The Pakistan Rangers, a paramilitary force, took control of several restive areas of Karachi after the blast, officials said.
- "People have been saying that the government has been apathetic to the listening to the warnings of potential attacks and people's fears," Talat Hussain, the director of news at the local AAJ TV, told Al Jazeera.
- "Any number of groups come to mind who may have carried out the attack. The game clearly is to disrupt Pakistan."
- Rehman Malik, the interior minister, called for people to show restraint and asked that Shia processions over the next two days be cancelled following the attack.
A CAR BOMB BLAST ROCKS A CROWDED MARKET IN PESHAWAR
PESHWAR,Pakistan - A car bomb has exploded in a crowded market in the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing at least 80 people and wounding about 100, officials have said.
- A huge blaze erupted after the explosion on Wednesday, which came just hours after Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, arrived in Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, for talks with government officials.
- "The death toll is more than 80. Most of them are women and children," Sahib Gul, a doctor at the city's main hospital said.
- "We are facing a shortage of blood. I appeal on citizens to come and donate blood," another doctor was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.
- The blast caused serious damage in the area, and rescue workers said people were trapped under collapsed shops and buildings.
- The blast comes as Pakistan's military is fighting members of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the country's semi-autonomous tribal region of South Waziristan.
- The military launched its offensive nearly two weeks ago, pitting around 30,000 Pakistani troops against an estimated 10-12,000 Taliban fighters.
PAKISTAN CUTS DEAL WITH ANTI-US TRIBAL CHIEFS TO STAY OUT OF
Amid an assault on Pakistan's pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda strongholds, the country's military has apparently reached a deal with two powerful anti-US tribal chiefs to stay out of the battle.
- Under the agreement, the pro-Taliban chiefs, Mowlavi Nazir and Hafiz Gul Bahadur will stay neutral in parts of South Waziristan controlled by Pakistani militants. They will also let the army to move unrestricted through areas in their control, giving the military additional fronts and boosting chances of a victory.
- The army in return will ease patrols and bombings in areas controlled by Nazir and Bahadur, the Associated Press quoted two Pakistani intelligence officials based in the region as saying.
- Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said there was no agreement with the two men, but vaguely commented that "there is an understanding with them that they will not interfere in this war."
- US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Monday he was unaware of such an agreement, but other US officials said the strategy is not surprising.
- 30,000 Pakistani troops are battling an estimated 11,500 pro-Taliban militant.
PAKISTAN'S INFORMATION MINISTER RESIGNED
Lawyers and civil activists have vowed to intensify their agitation against the government
Sherry Rehman, Pakistan's information minister, has reportedly resigned over the government's handling of the country's media.Though unconfirmed, reports of Rehman's resignation add further uncertainty to Pakistani politics already in turmoil over growing opposition protests.
"By all accounts she has resigned," Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reported from Islamabad.
"Her personal staff say 'yes, she has resigned', however the government is saying they are open to resolving the issue."
Rehman had been a key adviser to Asif Ali Zardari, the Pakistani president, and her resignation would be a blow to his embattled government.
"She's one of the people that many say managed to manoeuvre Ali Asif Zardari into power. If she's gone, then he's lost a lot of support within the government," Khan said.
Rehman's resignation is reportedly linked to the government's clampdown on the country's media as opposition workers and lawyers undertake a "long march' towards the capital Islamabad.
Pakistan's Geo News TV channel claimed Zardari had ordered it be blocked across the country, the Press Trust of India reported.
Zardari's office dismissed the claim.
Courtesy: Al Jazeera..
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