Pakistan: 39 killed in blasts

2004-10-07 08:05

Multan - Two bombs exploded at a gathering of Sunni Muslim radicals in the central Pakistan city of Multan before dawn on Thursday, killing at least 39 people and injuring about 100 others, officials said.

Police immediately suspected a sectarian attack. The bombing comes less than a week after a suicide attack left 31 dead at a Shiite mosque in an eastern city.

About 3 000 people had gathered in a residential area of Multan to mark the anniversary of the death of the leader of the outlawed Sunni radical group, Sipah-e-Sahaba, killed in an attack last year.

A car bomb exploded near the venue as people were starting to disperse after the overnight meeting, and two minutes later a second bomb attached to a motorcycle went off, deputy city police chief Arshad Hameed said.

Act of terrorism

He said that at least 36 people were killed.

"It seems to be an act of sectarian terrorism, but we are still investigating," he told The Associated Press.

Officials at the Nishtar government hospital said at least 39 people were killed and more than 100 people were wounded, about 50 seriously. About 50 others were treated for minor injuries and later discharged.

Pools of blood and shoes of the victims were scattered at the scene, near the charred remains of the car.

Jamil Usmani, 26, who had been standing in a nearby parking lot with friends, said a stampede after the bombing caused many injuries.

"The explosion numbed our ears, we saw people falling on each other, everybody was crying, everybody was running," he said. "Many people were injured in the stampede, we started picking them up and asked passing cars for help."

Talat Mahmood Tariq, police chief for Multan region, said the car bomb, estimated to weigh about seven kilograms, was set off by remote control and most injuries were caused by flying metal from the vehicle.

It did not appear to be a suicide attack because no body parts were found inside the car, Multan police chief Sikander Hayyat told the private Geo television network.

"We condemn this terrorist attack. This is tragic," Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told AP in the capital Islamabad. "The government will continue its mission against terrorism."

Blamed on Shiites

The bombings happened around 04:40 as the gathering was dispersing after prayers for the soul of Sipah-e-Sahaba leader Maulana Azam Tariq, who was gunned down on the outskirts of Islamabad last year - an attack blamed on Shiite Muslim militants.

A leader of the group blamed Thursday's bombings on radical Shiite Muslims.

From his hospital bed, Mohammed Nawaz, 23, said he was knocked to the ground by a blast, and saw the burning wreck of the car and a nearby electricity transformer on fire. His head and one hand were bandaged.

Pakistan, a key ally in the United States-led war on terrorism, has suffered a spate of terrorist attacks in recent years, and has a history of sectarian violence.

- AP