Pakistan:
International Community, Bhutto Condemns Bomb Attack
Former Pakistan’s
Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has condemned the midnight suicide
attack that killed more than 130 people and shattered her
homecoming after eight years in exile. She said in Islamabad
that she remained committed to the country’s political cause and
has vowed to continue.
The authorities in Islamabad said on Friday, just as forensic
experts studied the severed head of the alleged bomber to try to
determine his identity, that the attack may be the work of
al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Reports say the incident; one of the
deadliest in Pakistan's history has the traits of militants
allied with a pro-Taliban warlord and al-Qaeda, Ghulam Muhammad
Mohtarem, the top security official in Sindh province, where the
attack took place, remarked that Bhutto's camp had not seriously
considered the need for security for her return after eight
years in exile.
Bhutto's procession had been creeping toward the center of
Karachi for 10 hours with supporters thronging her armored truck
when a small explosion erupted near the front of the vehicle.
That was quickly followed by a larger blast, destroying two
police vans escorting the procession.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the blasts.
Casualty
Officials at six hospitals in Karachi reported 136 dead and
about 250 wounded.
A senior police Chief, Azhar Farooqi however said that 113
people died, including 20 policemen, and that 300 people were
wounded.
On the eve of Bhutto's arrival, a provincial government official
cited intelligence reports that three suicide bombers linked to
Mehsud, probably the most prominent leader of Islamic militants
destabilizing its northwestern border regions near Afghanistan,
were in Karachi.
The local government had also warned Bhutto could be targeted by
Taliban or al-Qaida.
Local media reports this month quoted Mehsud as vowing to meet
Bhutto's return to Pakistan with suicide attacks.
Suspect
Manzur Mughal, the Karachi police officer in charge of the
investigation, said detectives had established that a young man
who threw a grenade blew himself up 22 seconds later next to the
truck. The attacker's head was said to have been found nearby
and taken to a forensic lab for identification.
Ms. Bhutto survived unscathed, but the explosions that went off
near the bulletproof truck she was riding in turned her jubilant
homecoming parade into a scene of carnage, ripping victims apart
and hurling a fireball into the sky. The attack shattered the
windows of her truck.
Reactions
The President, General Pervez Musharraf said he was "deeply
shocked" by the attack and condemned it in the strongest
possible terms. He said the blast was part of a "conspiracy
against democracy."
The attack cast a pall over Bhutto's talks with Musharraf and
possible plans for an alliance. It remained unclear whether the
attack would stiffen the two leaders' resolve to fight militancy
together or strain already bad relations between Bhutto and the
ruling party.
Political Scene
Musharraf won re-election to the presidency in a vote this month
by lawmakers, but it is being challenged in the Supreme Court.
If he is confirmed for a new five-year presidential term, he has
promised to quit the military and restore civilian rule.
Bhutto plans to contest parliamentary elections due in January,
and has ambitions to win a third term as prime minister.
The United Nations, the European Union, the United States,
Afghanistan and India were among the first to condemn the
attack.
AP/YINKA
