Nine die in market blast

2004-12-10 15:34

Quetta - A bomb apparently targeting a military truck killed nine people including a soldier and injured at least 21 when it ripped through a market in the Pakistani city of Quetta on Friday, officials said.

The device, believed to have been attached to a bicycle, exploded near the vehicle in the main Mizaan Chowk commercial district of the city, the capital of southwestern Baluchistan province, police said.

"We have received seven bodies. One of the dead is a soldier," Nasir Khan, a medical officer at the Civil Hospital, told AFP.

At least two seriously injured civilians among the 23 wounded initially brought to the hospital subsequently died, he said later.

The wounded include five soldiers who were being shifted to a military hospital, Khan said. In total about a dozen people suffered serious injuries, including one of the soldiers.

Khan said a state of emergency had been declared at the hospital.

Television footage showed scenes of chaos in the crammed marketplace with agitated crowds apparently loading injured people into minibuses and ambulances.

Taking soldiers shopping

Sparsely-populated Baluchistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, is in the throes of an intermittent tribal uprising that flared up during the summer.

The military vehicle was carrying soldiers visiting the area for weekly shopping, police officer Anwar Jan told AFP.

Akbar Ali, director of the local bomb disposal unit, told AFP that the device was apparently planted on a bicycle parked near the truck. "We are investigating if it was timed device or a remote controlled bomb," he added.

The unrest in Baluchistan is fuelled by resentment that foreign investors and richer neighbouring provinces are creaming off profits from the region.

Some tribal leaders have opposed a government plan to establish at least three garrisons in the region, which is poverty-stricken yet rich in natural resources.

- AFP