MINGORA: A time bomb exploded in a cinema hall on Saturday, but there were no casualties as the bomb went off in between shows in an empty hall, a police official said. "There could have been casualties if the bomb had exploded during show time," the police official told Daily Times.
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Palwasha Cinema in Mingora, district headquarters of Swat district, was targeted for the second time since November last year when a bomb blast killed two people. No group has so far claimed responsibility for this recent attempt. The explosion took place at 5:45 PM, minutes before the start of the next show, the cinema management said. It was unclear whether the militants had planted the bomb for the next show or if it went off after its scheduled time. "That is what we are investigating," the police official said. "Judging by the damage, the bomb was of low intensity," he added.
Swat district has been in the spotlight since last year after militants from banned jihadi organisations, including the Maulana Sufi Muhammad-led Tehrik Nifaz-e-Shariah Muhammad (TNSM), began targeting the area. On April 28, two militants were killed while planting a bomb in the district and police linked the two killed militants to TNSM. The jailed Maulana Sufi Muhammad mobilised thousands of volunteers in Malakand division to fight with the Taliban against the US-backed Northern Alliance. Most of them were either killed or arrested while some of them were also taken to the Guantanamo Bay detention centre.
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