80 killed in revenge bombings after death of al-Qaida leader
Source: Agencies |
May 14, 2011, Saturday
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TWO suicide bombers attacked recruits leaving a paramilitary training center in Pakistan yesterday, killing 80 people and injuring around 120 others in the first retaliation for the killing of Osama bin Laden by American commandos.
The Taliban claimed responsibility, blaming the Pakistani military for failing to stop the US raid.
Bin Laden was killed last week in Abbottabad, about a three-hour drive from the scene of the bombing.
"We have done this to avenge the Abbottabad incident," Ahsanullah Ahsan, a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, said. He said the group was also planning attacks on Americans living in Pakistan.
The bombers blew themselves up in Shabqadar at the main gate of the facility for the Frontier Constabulary, a poorly equipped but front-line force in the battle against al-Qaida and allied Islamist groups like the Pakistani Taliban close to the Afghan border. Like other branches of Pakistan's security forces, it has received United States funding to try to sharpen its skills.
At least 80 people were killed, including 66 recruits, and around 120 people were wounded, said police officer Liaqat Ali Khan.
Around 900 young men were leaving the center after spending six months training there.
They were in high spirits and looking forward to seeing their families, a survivor said.
Some people were sitting inside minivans and others were loading luggage on top when the two bombers struck.
"We were heading toward a van when the first blast took place and we fell on the ground and then there was another blast," said 21-year-old Rehmanullah Khan.
"We enjoyed our time together, all the good and bad weather and I cannot forget the cries of my friends before they died."
The scene was littered with shards of glass mixed with blood and flesh. The explosions destroyed at least 10 vans.
It was the first major militant attack in Pakistan since bin Laden's death on May 2, and the deadliest this year.
Militants had pledged to avenge the killing and launch reprisal strikes in Pakistan.
The explosive vests used in yesterday's attacks were packed with ball bearings and nails, police said.
Police official Nisar Khan said a suicide bomber in his late teens or early 20s set off one of the blasts.
"The first blast occurred in the middle of the road, and after that there was a huge blast that was more powerful than the first," said Abdul Wahid, a 25-year-old recruit whose legs were wounded in the blasts.
Bin Laden was killed by US Navy SEALs who raided his compound in Abbottabad.
Pakistani officials have denied knowing he was living in the compound but have criticized the American raid ordered by President Barack Obama as a violation of their country's sovereignty.
To counter allegations that Pakistan had harbored bin Laden, the officials have pointed out that many thousands of Pakistani citizens, and up to 3,000 of its security forces, have died in suicide bombings and other attacks since September 11, 2001, when Islamabad became an ally of the US in taking on Islamist extremists.
Many of the attacks in Pakistan have targeted security forces, but government buildings, religious minorities, public places and Western targets have also been hit.
In another development, Pakistani intelligence officials said yesterday a US missile strike killed three people near the Afghan border.
The four missiles struck a vehicle in the Doga Madakhel village of North Waziristan tribal region.
North Waziristan is home to many militant groups dedicated to attacking Western troops in Afghanistan.
The officials did not know the identities of the dead.
The Taliban claimed responsibility, blaming the Pakistani military for failing to stop the US raid.
Bin Laden was killed last week in Abbottabad, about a three-hour drive from the scene of the bombing.
"We have done this to avenge the Abbottabad incident," Ahsanullah Ahsan, a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, said. He said the group was also planning attacks on Americans living in Pakistan.
The bombers blew themselves up in Shabqadar at the main gate of the facility for the Frontier Constabulary, a poorly equipped but front-line force in the battle against al-Qaida and allied Islamist groups like the Pakistani Taliban close to the Afghan border. Like other branches of Pakistan's security forces, it has received United States funding to try to sharpen its skills.
At least 80 people were killed, including 66 recruits, and around 120 people were wounded, said police officer Liaqat Ali Khan.
Around 900 young men were leaving the center after spending six months training there.
They were in high spirits and looking forward to seeing their families, a survivor said.
Some people were sitting inside minivans and others were loading luggage on top when the two bombers struck.
"We were heading toward a van when the first blast took place and we fell on the ground and then there was another blast," said 21-year-old Rehmanullah Khan.
"We enjoyed our time together, all the good and bad weather and I cannot forget the cries of my friends before they died."
The scene was littered with shards of glass mixed with blood and flesh. The explosions destroyed at least 10 vans.
It was the first major militant attack in Pakistan since bin Laden's death on May 2, and the deadliest this year.
Militants had pledged to avenge the killing and launch reprisal strikes in Pakistan.
The explosive vests used in yesterday's attacks were packed with ball bearings and nails, police said.
Police official Nisar Khan said a suicide bomber in his late teens or early 20s set off one of the blasts.
"The first blast occurred in the middle of the road, and after that there was a huge blast that was more powerful than the first," said Abdul Wahid, a 25-year-old recruit whose legs were wounded in the blasts.
Bin Laden was killed by US Navy SEALs who raided his compound in Abbottabad.
Pakistani officials have denied knowing he was living in the compound but have criticized the American raid ordered by President Barack Obama as a violation of their country's sovereignty.
To counter allegations that Pakistan had harbored bin Laden, the officials have pointed out that many thousands of Pakistani citizens, and up to 3,000 of its security forces, have died in suicide bombings and other attacks since September 11, 2001, when Islamabad became an ally of the US in taking on Islamist extremists.
Many of the attacks in Pakistan have targeted security forces, but government buildings, religious minorities, public places and Western targets have also been hit.
In another development, Pakistani intelligence officials said yesterday a US missile strike killed three people near the Afghan border.
The four missiles struck a vehicle in the Doga Madakhel village of North Waziristan tribal region.
North Waziristan is home to many militant groups dedicated to attacking Western troops in Afghanistan.
The officials did not know the identities of the dead.
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