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| India-Pakistan |
| Five killed in suicide attack at minister's house in Quetta |
| 2010-09-10 |
| [Pak Daily Times] Balochistan Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd had a narrow escape on Thursday when a suicide bomber detonated himself inside the minister's residence in Quetta, killing five people and injuring four others. The blast occurred moments after Kurd, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid's (PML-Q) parliamentary leader in the Balochistan Assembly, left for his office, located in the Civil Secretariat. According to eyewitnesses, the blast occurred after the main gate of the house was opened to allow a water tanker to enter the compound. The blast completely destroyed a vehicle parked inside the house as well as caused considerable damage to the house. Two security guards, Abdul Salam and Gul Zaman, and a domestic employee, Takri Muhammad Usman, were killed on the spot. Five of the injured were taken to the provincial Sandeman Hospital, where two of them succumbed to their injures late on Thursday. Initially, police termed the blast a result of explosives planted inside the car, parked inside the house. However, Bomb Disposal Squad personnel said that it was a suicide attack. "It was definitely a suicide blast and we have collected evidence and sent the reports to the provincial government. Over 15 kilogrammes of explosive material was used in the blast," an official of the Bomb Disposal Squad told reporters after the incident. Provincial Minister Communication and Works Mir Sadiq Umrani also confirmed that it was a suicide attack, saying it could be the reaction of the statement issued by Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Wednesday. "I was on my way to office when someone informed me about blast," said Kurd, adding that he had not received any threat from any organisation. "I am an inhabitant of Balochistan. I cannot be scared by blasts," he said. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. |
| Posted by:Fred |