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Afghanistan/South Asia

Four terrorists involved in mosque attack

2004-10-03

At least four terrorists were involved in the Sialkot Imambargah suicide bombing, two of whom exploded the bombs while the other two maintained watch outside the mosque, sources told Daily Times on Saturday. Investigation officers said at least 3kg of explosives were used in the bombing. Eyewitnesses claimed that two unidentified persons were spotted standing at the mosque entrances for nearly half an hour. Both disappeared after the explosion, and a brief case containing 6.5kg of explosives was found at the spot where one of them had stood. The bomb was later defused by security agents.

That was supposed to be the second boom...

Sources said evidence suggested that one of the bombers had explosives strapped to his wrists, ankles and waist and the other carried a parcel containing a bomb. They described one of the bombers as a middle-aged man with red hair and a beard who wore a brown shalwar kameez. The other one was around 25 years old and stood a couple of yards away from his accomplice. The two exploded bombs simultaneously in the fifth row of the Jumma congregation. The body of one of the attackers was ~~hamburger~~ shredded beyond recognition while the other whose face remained reasonably undamaged was identified as a malang from Faisalabad.

Now all we have to do is determine what a "malang" is...

Reports also surfaced that a few hours after the explosion, a silver Suzuki Mehran charged the Punjab inspector general of police's convoy, which was heading to the explosion site. The car collided with the last vehicle of convoy and was intercepted by a police van.A number of Anjuman Tulba-e-Islam (ATI) students surrounded the entrance and exits of the main roads in Sialkot after the bomb explosion. The crowds, who were armed with weapons, burned tyres and caused severe damage to property. "Troops were deployed at the mosque and at hospitals to restore order. We took over so that other untoward situations would not occur," said a senior army officer outside the imambargah.

Posted by:Fred

#7 Too bad it is beyond hope that such terrorist attacks could possibly impress upon these various Islamic sects the need to end terrorism. No better object lesson has ever been so utterly and completely wasted upon so many who most richly deserve it.

Posted by: Zenster 2004-10-03 5:18:11 PM

#6 My Pakistani-to-Strine dictionary defines "malang" as a "wanker".

My Strine-to-New Hampshire dictionary defines "wanker" as a "dipsh!t".

Posted by: Carl in N.H. 2004-10-03 9:31:40 AM

#5 The use of the word "Malang", if anything,will inflame opinion. The Sufi were usually considered the most tolerant (and often most heterodox) of Islam's Sunni sect. They are despised by the Al Qaeda and its intellectual leadership who are uniformally orthodox and Salafist. Why Malang would commit such a crime is inexplicable. Looks like someone is interested in starting a holy war within a holy war.

Posted by: Tancred 2004-10-03 9:31:38 AM

#4 Suicide bombings were alien to Pakistan until a few years ago, now they are rapidly becoming the attack of choice, like in Indonesia, Chechnya and Iraq.

Generally mystics and sufis in Pakistan have stayed away from the Jihadi groups because the latter (influenced by puratanical Wahabi-type views) view the former as following an Islam corrupted by outside influences, such as Hinduism.

Posted by: Paul Moloney 2004-10-03 4:05:14 AM

#3 Could be that they use the extreme physical discipline to strengthen their bodies for the suicide attack, believing that they will remain relatively intact so as to still be able to take advantage of the '72 virgins' in 'Paradise'.

Anything is possible when it comes to the sickness that is Islam.

Posted by: Bryan 2004-10-03 3:42:30 AM

#2 Faces of Mysticism

The crescendo of the drum rises and the bearded man with long hair and a weird attire swirl in frenzy. He is one of that mystic community known as "Malangs" who throng to the shrines at the festivals. The "Malangs" represent a baffling phenomenon of human endeavor and toughness. Braving the extremes of weather, they have given up the material values of life and spend all their lives with a proverbial devotion to their patron sufi saint. Often lost in the smoke of opium, they are oblivious to the world around them. The origin of the "Malang" cult is as old as the history of Islam itself. Primarily a "Malang" is a devotee of the saint at whose shrine he is present day and night to serve. Sometimes a parent, whose prayer to the saint is fulfilled, leaves his child at the shrine as a token of gratitude - the child grows up to become a "Malang". Renouncing the material world, he becomes a spiritualist himself with his own sphere of disciples. Living a carefree life with a total commitment to his master, the "Malang" depends on the donations and the food which the pilgrims to the shrines present as an offering. Some of the "Malangs" spend their entire life time within the domains of one shrine while others keep on moving from one to another. The faith in their spiritual teachings makes them endure unbelievable rigors like walking on burning coals or standing in an ice cold river for days. The attire of the "Malangs" is as varied as their appearances but one thing that is common is their total belief in their purpose.

Sounds like an order of Islamics acestics probably influenced by Hindiusm. Strange that one of them would be involved in a sectarian suicide bombing..

Posted by: Paul Moloney 2004-10-03 3:26:50 AM

#1 If I follow the Pakistani news correctly, a malang is a beggar?

Posted by: Pappy 2004-10-03 1:02:33 AM

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