Pakistan suicide bomber kills 22 outside mosque

[shukla_swapnil]

It's the third major attack within six weeks in Pakistan's heartland. The bloodshed might have been worse: Guards kept the bomber from entering the compound, where about 1,000 were gathered.
By Mubashir Zaidi and Laura King
12:20 PM PDT, April 5, 2009
Reporting from Istanbul, Turkey, and Islamabad, Pakistan -- A suicide bomber struck a Shiite Muslim mosque outside the Pakistani capital today, killing 22 people, the latest sign of rising sectarian violence and the growing reach of the Islamic insurgency.

The attack took place in the city of Chakwal, about 60 miles south of Islamabad. It came less than 24 hours after at least eight paramilitary troops were killed in a bombing in the capital and six days after militants stormed a police training center in the eastern city of Lahore.

The spiraling violence in Pakistan has long since spilled out of the tribal areas along the Afghan border, where Taliban and Al Qaeda militants find a haven, and into Pakistan's heartland. The bombing marked the third major attack in six weeks in Punjab, the country's most populous and affluent province.

A Taliban-linked group claimed responsibility for today's bombing, which occurred at the entrance to a Shiite mosque that was packed with worshipers. Insurgents in Pakistan have stepped up efforts to sow chaos by fomenting violence between Sunni Muslims and the country's Shiite minority.

The attack left a now-familiar tableau of wailing wounded, pools of blood and a scattering of shoes and clothing.

A district police officer, B. A. Nasir, said guards intercepted the bomber before he could enter the mosque compound, where at least 1,000 people were gathered, thus preventing even greater carnage.

The relentless pace of attacks has emphasized the fragility of Pakistan's civilian government, in power just over a year. Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gillani vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice, but most suicide bombings in the country go unsolved.

President Obama has pledged massive new development aid to Pakistan but warned that it is not a "blank check" and that authorities must take decisive steps to quell the insurgency. The militants' increasing strength in Pakistan has greatly complicated Western troops' battle with the Taliban and allied groups in Afghanistan.

The Fedayeen al-Islam, which is believed either to be allied with Pakistan's Taliban movement or a front for another Taliban-linked group, claimed responsibility for today's attack in calls to Western news agencies. The claim could not be immediately substantiated.

In a number of recent instances, the attackers have demanded a halt to the campaign of U.S. missile strikes aimed at militant leaders in the tribal areas. American intelligence officials have said the strikes are successfully disrupting the leadership of militant groups operating along the Afghan frontier. But the raids, normally carried out by pilotless drones, also have aroused strong anti-government sentiment.

Pakistan suicide bomber kills 22 outside mosque - Los Angeles Times

 

[shukla_swapnil]

SLAMABAD: Beithullah Mehsud, a Taliban militant commander in South Waziristan who heads an umbrella group of militant organisations called the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, has claimed responsibility for the attack on the Lahore police training school on Monday.

Mehsud, who spoke to BBC and Western news services on Tuesday, said the attack was in retaliation for the U.S. drone strikes in the tribal areas, some of which targeted his hideouts in South Waziristan.

The attack killed eight police recruits and two civilians, and left nearly 100 people wounded. Three of the attackers blew themselves up during a security forces operation to recapture the training school from the militants.

Mehsud warned of more attacks until Pakistan ended support to the U.S., and to the news agency AFP, he also threatened attacks on American soil. The U.S. State Department recently announced a $5-million award for him.

“Very soon we will take revenge from America, not in Afghanistan but in Washington, which will amaze the entire world,” said Mehsud.

He also said the Taliban were behind another attack on Monday in Bannu, in which a suicide bomber attacked a security convoy killing seven security personnel, as well one last week at the Special Branch offices in Islamabad.

Mehsud is the same man who ISI chief Shuja Pasha, in remarks days after the Mumbai attacks, described as a “patriotic” citizen of Pakistan. He said Mehsud and the Swat Taliban leader Mullah Fazlullah were ready to offer ceasefires with the Pakistan Army, so that troops could concentrate on the Indian border.

Interior Ministry head Rehman Malik said on Monday that the “entire planning” of the Lahore attack was done by Mehsud.

The government has announced no further arrests in the case after the capture of one suspect from near the school during the attack. The bearded man was identified as an Afghan national, and Mr. Malik said he was an associate of Mehsud.

He was caught near a place that the Army was using as a helipad during the operations. According to reports, he was attempting to blow up a helicopter with a grenade that was found in his possession.

The exact number of attackers is still not clear. Some officials are saying that all have been accounted for, while others have talked of the possibility that some may have escaped while the operation was on.

For a while, it was thought that some of the attackers who were wearing police uniforms might have got themselves admitted in hospital along with the other injured.

Mr. Malik said on Monday he had issued strict orders not to discharge anybody until verification had been carried out.

The Hindu : International : Taliban claims responsibility