3 bombs rip Lahore procession; at least 25 dead
Source: Agencies |
September 2, 2010, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THREE bombs ripped through a Shiite Muslim religious procession in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore yesterday, killing at least 25 people and wounding more than 150 others, police said.
The bombs exploded at three separate sites as 35,000 Shiites marched through the streets of Lahore in their traditional mourning procession for the caliph Ali, one of Shiite Islam's most respected holy men.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the attackers would not escape justice.
After the blasts, the marchers erupted in fury, setting fire to a police station, another police facility, two police cars and three motorcycles, said Zulfiqar Hameed, a senior police officer.
Police lobbed tear gas canisters at the crowd and fired shots in the air to disperse the assailants, he said.
The first blast was a time bomb that exploded in the street near a well-known Shiite building. Footage of that explosion on Geo television showed a small blast erupting amid a crowd of people on the street followed by a large plume of smoke. Hundreds of people fled from the blast, while others rushed to the area to carry the wounded to safety.
Minutes later, with the streets in chaos, a male suicide bomber who appeared about 18 years old tried to force his way into an area where food was being prepared for the marchers and exploded, Hameed said.
Soon after, another suicide bomber detonated himself at an intersection near the end of the procession.
Hours earlier, three people were wounded in a shooting near a similar Shiite procession in the southern city of Karachi, but senior police officer Iqbal Mahmood said the incident did not target the march.
Another bomb exploded in Shabqadar in northwest Pakistan, killing one passer-by and wounding 15 people, including one police officer, police officer Nisar Khan said.
The renewed violence came as millions of Pakistanis continued to struggle for food and water more than a month after the worst floods in the country's history.
The bombs exploded at three separate sites as 35,000 Shiites marched through the streets of Lahore in their traditional mourning procession for the caliph Ali, one of Shiite Islam's most respected holy men.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the attackers would not escape justice.
After the blasts, the marchers erupted in fury, setting fire to a police station, another police facility, two police cars and three motorcycles, said Zulfiqar Hameed, a senior police officer.
Police lobbed tear gas canisters at the crowd and fired shots in the air to disperse the assailants, he said.
The first blast was a time bomb that exploded in the street near a well-known Shiite building. Footage of that explosion on Geo television showed a small blast erupting amid a crowd of people on the street followed by a large plume of smoke. Hundreds of people fled from the blast, while others rushed to the area to carry the wounded to safety.
Minutes later, with the streets in chaos, a male suicide bomber who appeared about 18 years old tried to force his way into an area where food was being prepared for the marchers and exploded, Hameed said.
Soon after, another suicide bomber detonated himself at an intersection near the end of the procession.
Hours earlier, three people were wounded in a shooting near a similar Shiite procession in the southern city of Karachi, but senior police officer Iqbal Mahmood said the incident did not target the march.
Another bomb exploded in Shabqadar in northwest Pakistan, killing one passer-by and wounding 15 people, including one police officer, police officer Nisar Khan said.
The renewed violence came as millions of Pakistanis continued to struggle for food and water more than a month after the worst floods in the country's history.
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