More of the same in Pakistan…
Here in the United States we complain a great deal about many things: taxes, unemployment, the high cost of living, etc., yet we take for granted just how lucky we are. Imagine living in Pakistan, Afghanistan or Iraq, when at any moment a religious freak could put an end to your day, and life, by blowing himself up in the name of his fictitious God. TGO
Refer to story below. Source: Reuters
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – Suspected Taliban suicide bombers killed at least 40 people at the office compound of a top government official in northwest Pakistan on Monday, demonstrating the ability of militants to strike high-profile targets in defiance of army offensives.
“There were two bombers. They were on foot. The first blew himself up inside the office of one of my deputies while the second one set off explosives when guards caught him,” said Amjad Ali Khan, the top government official in Mohmand region, who appeared to be the target of the attack.
Pakistan’s army has said several offensives it has launched since last year have weakened al Qaeda-linked Pakistani Taliban militants seeking to destabilize the U.S.-backed government.
But they often melt away during assaults on their strongholds to set up operations elsewhere or wait patiently to return.
“Whenever you put pressure on them, they fight back and this phenomenon will not be over in days. They will strike whenever they will get a chance,” said Mehmood Shah, former chief of security in Pakistan’s tribal regions, home to some of the world’s most dangerous militant groups.
Pakistan’s Taliban militants have staged suicide bombings in a bid to destabilize the U.S.-backed government, which faces an array of problems from a fragile economy to growing discontent over an energy crisis.
Pakistan Taliban spokesman Omar Khalid said the group carried out the Mohmand attack, saying it was in response to what he said was the Pakistani government’s recent decision to hand over Arab militants to the United States.
“The blasts destroyed many rooms in the compound and our reports are 40 people were killed and many wounded,” a senior security official in the region said.
When the bombers struck, Khan was holding talks with tribesmen on the need to further strengthen militias who are helping the government fight militancy, said Mohammad Ghaffar, one of his deputies.
“I entered the compound. I heard a blast. I fell down, got up and then another explosion happened,” said witness Ishtiaq Ahmed, from his hospital bed in the city of Peshawar.
“People were shouting and some paramilitary soldiers fired in the air. I saw charred bodies.”
Aside from its struggle against homegrown militants, Pakistan faces heavy U.S. pressure to go after Afghan Taliban militants who cross its border to attack Western forces in Afghanistan.
Hospital officials said 60 people were wounded in the attack in Mohmand, one of the lawless tribal regions in Pakistan’s northwest. The officials said they feared casualties would rise.
(Additional reporting by Kamran Haider in Islamabad; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Alex Richardson)
(For more Reuters coverage of Pakistan, see: http://www.reuters.com/places/pakistan)
