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| India-Pakistan |
| 10 killed, 27 hurt as bomber strikes army bus |
| 2008-02-05 |
| Ten people were killed and 27 injured on Monday when a suicide bomber crashed his bike into an armed forces bus carrying students and officials of Army Medical College, near the General Headquarters (GHQ) at around 7.25am, sources in military hospitals said. An eyewitness said the suicide bomber hit the 30-seater bus in front of National Logistic Cell (NLC) offices close to the GHQ, blowing away the roof, windows and doors of the bus. Several other vehicles were also damaged. A van carrying schoolchildren was also partially damaged, but the children remained unhurt. RA Bazaar police Station House Officer (SHO) Raja Basharat Abbasi told Daily Times at the crime scene that it was a suicide attack. According to him, it was yet to be established if the suicide bomber had been riding a bike. He said three civilians and two armed forces personnel were killed and 10 military officials seriously injured, adding that an FIR had been registered and investigations started. According to ISPR, four security forces personnel were killed in the blast. The dead included four members of the security forces, according to a military statement, reported AP. They included a colonel from the army’s medical corps, according to a military official and a police officer, both of whom spoke on condition of anonymity. A female major was among the injured, the military official said. Troops seal: Reportedly, troops sealed off the entire area around the GHQ following the blast, and police were not allowed access to the spot. Tents were erected at the crime scene to cover the remains of the blast and newsmen were asked to vacate the place immediately. Similarly, private and Rescue 1122 ambulances were not allowed to shift the injured and the dead to the military hospitals and only army ambulances shifted them to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) and the Military Hospital (MH). District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ) officials told Daily Times that the body of an unknown person had been shifted to the hospital but later military personnel shifted it to the CMH. They said none of the injured persons were admitted to the hospital. City Police Officer (CPO) Saud Aziz told Daily Times that at least five people were killed and 25 hurt in the incident. He said law-enforcement agencies had collected evidence from the scene of the attack, including the suicide’s bomber’s head. The bomber’s face was being reconstructed at the CMH, he added. Aziz said a special investigation team led by SSP (Operations) Yasin Farooq was investigating the incident. When asked about the exact death toll of military officials and civilians, the CPO said, “It’s a sensitive issue.” Baitullah Mehsud: Caretaker Federal Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz told reporters in Islamabad on Monday that Baitullah Mehsud may be involved in the Rawalpindi suicide attack as only he had the ability to carry out such attack, Online reported. The interior minister said that security agencies of the country were being targeted as police and army were taking effective action against the militants, NNI reported. |
| Posted by:Fred |