Peshawar bleeds

TheNews
There was a depressing, appalling, familiarity about the news that a car bomb had exploded in the busy Khyber bazaar area of Peshawar around noon on Friday. Friday; a time of prayer and peaceful reflection and celebration of the Muslim faith across the country, but seems to be the favourite day for those whose deadly business is to terrorise us. At the time of writing there are at least 42 dead and 54 injured with an estimated twenty of those injured being in critical condition. The numbers of dead and injured will inevitably rise. Rescue services are calling it the 'worst blast we have ever seen'. Interior Minister Rehman Malik was swift to condemn the atrocity and said that the long-promised operation in Waziristan was 'imminent'. Local business men speaking on private TV channels spoke of their frustration and anger at the way in which their lives and livelihoods were being destroyed and of their desire to leave the city as attempting to carry on business was pointless – and carried with it an unacceptable level of risk. There is understandable confusion about the type of device that caused this carnage, but the opinion seems to be that it was a suicide bomb, probably carried in a car which may have been moving at the time of the blast and the Khyber bazaar may not have been the intended target.

There will be entirely predictable statements that there has been a security lapse or failure and this that or the other agency has failed in its duty to protect the public. The bombers should have been spotted at any one of the numerous checkpoints that ring the city. Intelligence should have been better. CCTV cameras should have recorded them…all will be cited as a failure of the systems set up to protect the citizenry. All will miss the point that NWFP is a war-zone, not merely the site of what may euphemistically be termed an 'insurgency' – but an area where a fully-fledged war is being fought. It is a war fought by combatants who in one case may have signed the Geneva Convention on the conduct of warfare but have little care for it; and in the other the Geneva Convention is something they have never heard of. Civilian casualties are as much a part of the war in NWFP as were the thousands of refugees who died when the Allies firebombed Dresden in the Second World War or the civilians who were fried to a crisp in Hiroshima.

This is a war being fought with a ferocity that is increasing by the day and short of putting the entire city on lock-down there is probably little the civil or military authorities can do to stop the carnage. Realistically, there will be intelligence successes that we may not hear about, and operations that net the bombers and terrorists, but there will always be one that gets through. Such is the nature of warfare. This is a war that we cannot afford to lose no matter the attrition. It is our war, no matter how it gets 'dressed up' for political purposes. Ours to win and ours to lose. Now is the time for us to stand against the bombers and the gunmen, to expose them, reveal their dark plots and evil designs. More of us will die doing so, but stand we must.

40th terror attack in Peshawar since Malakand operation

PESHAWAR: The provincial capital has suffered almost 40 terrorist attacks since the launch of military operation in troubled Malakand Division last June.

The Friday blast in Soekarno Square was the deadliest so far, followed by explosion at the Pearl Continental (PC) hotel on June 9 that killed 17 people and injured over 50 others. Only a day after the PC blast, a police party on Ring Road near Charsadda Road was first attacked with a hand grenade and later hit by a suicide bomber to kill one person and injure eight policemen.

Intelligence reports about tasking terrorists to hit any target in Peshawar are being received on a daily basis. An alleged suicide bomber was caught along with two accomplices only a day before the Soekarno Square blast.

The city was attacked with almost 40 rockets in around a dozen barrages during the last less than one month. These rockets have landed in almost all parts of the provincial capital. Also, attacks on Nato terminals seem to have started once again as four vehicles were torched early Friday, exactly in the area where two oil tankers were attacked last month.

The situation has resulted in erecting barricades on almost all the main entry points to the city and cantonment, causing inconvenience to hundreds of thousands of Peshawarites everyday. Apart from the inconvenience, the dwellers of the city are scared of almost daily terrorism incidents. This has forced many to change their planning, as they fear a bleak future of the city ahead due to wrong policies of tackling terrorists.

The holy month of Ramazan proved to be the most peaceful when only two terrorist attacks were reported, both in the first two days. One of the attacks occurred in Hayatabad where two people were killed while a suicide bomber blew himself up on the next day in Momin Town, killing five.

Peshawar has proved to be a soft target for terrorists since 2004. However, the ongoing wave of terror intensified first with the launch of military operation in Swat and then in the tribal agencies.

Peshawarites started to bear the brunt of the army action on May 8 when three rockets were fired at its international airport. A police van was attacked by the terrorists in Chamkani on May 12 when the cops were transporting some infamous militants. Police not only foiled the attack but also managed to gun down five attackers including a top leader of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The Nato container terminals on the Ring Road were attacked twice in mid May, torching several trailers and containers. A suicide attack on FC camp near Matani killed 11 persons, including security personnel on May 11 while a huge blast ripped through the crowded Barrisco Bazaar near Aasya Gate on May 14, killing 12 people and injuring dozens of others. The same day another explosion occurred in congested Gora Bazaar of the Peshawar cantonment that killed a minor girl and wounded four others when people were busy in shopping.

A high-intensity blast outside the Tasveer Mahal Cinema in Kabuli Chowk on May 21 killed another 12 people. Over 65 people, mostly labourers, were injured in the explosion that destroyed the cinema building and nearby establishments.

Terror struck the city again on May 28 with twin blasts in Qissa Khwani and a suicide attack on a police post in Sra Khawra on Kohat Road in quick succession. A total of nine people were killed in these terrorist attacks.

On June 3, a school was targeted with bombing in Sulemankhel village while a police van was blown up and its driver killed in another attack on police party in Hazarkhwani on June 8. Another school was blown up in Tirayee Payan on second day of Eidul Fitr.

Peshawar seems to be literally under siege where dwellers fear happening anything untoward to their lives and families. Police say that strict security measures have been taken in and around the town to protect its almost 3 million residents, but the fact is that the terrorist continue to hit targets right under the nose of several security agencies.

Traumatic scenes witnessed at LRH

PESHAWAR: The emergency ward of the Lady Reading Hospital was the scene of human tragedy on Friday as people mourned the death of their near and dear ones in the suicide blast and were searching for their kin amid screams of the injured writhing in agony.

As many as 49 people were killed and over 100 injured when a suicide car bomb ripped through Soekarno Chowk. It was the second suicide attack in provincial metropolis in the fortnight, in which civilians were targeted.

A large number of people gathered at the emergency ward of the busiest tertiary care hospital of the province. Sobbing women and men could be seen moving in chaos as many did not know the fate of their loved ones. Several wounded brought to the hospital in critical condition succumbed to injuries.

Though the number of the injured was huge, the doctors and paramedical staff were devotedly treating the injured and worked hard. They have been very busy for the last two years due to frequent bomb blasts in Peshawar and other cities of the province.

Wearing no shoes and chaddar, a middle-aged woman was desperately searching for her son in various wards of the hospital. She was crying and repeatedly saying “wai zama Tariq sa sho” (oh! where is my Tariq). Her son, who belonged to Michni area of Peshawar, was a vendor who used to sell beans at the Soekarno Chowk.

Another person was mourning the death of his brother, who was the driver of the ill-fated mini-bus that was reduced to twisted irons in the incident. “I used to drive the bus but today my brother replaced me,” he said. Cursing the perpetrators of the blast, he said in choked voice that may these terrorists face the same fate. The conductor of the bus also died in the blast, he cried.

Raheem Zada, an elderly man, weeping on the death of his son and two nephews, said most of his family boys were daily wagers and used to come in search of work to Soekarno Chowk. He said all the three were having little kids. “What kind of Islam is this? Can any Muslim kill people in such a brutal manner?” he questioned.

The most heartrending scene was that of a five-year old Amna, killed in the blast and lying in the arms of her injured father at a hospital bed. The unfortunate Afghan family of Badaber was going by the bus to attend a marriage ceremony of a relative in Haripur. Instead of celebrating the marriage, the couple was mourning the death of the minor.

People in the emergency ward could not stop crying when they saw body of the innocent girl wearing bangles, with her hands adorned with Henna. With tears rolling down her face, the unlucky mother, Zarin Bibi who was standing beside the bed, said, “May God destroy their (terrorists’) own homes as they have unleashed barbarity on us.” She lost her daughter while two of her sons and husband were injured in the blast.

Naseebullah, 30, hailing from Timergara in Lower Dir, was hit by shrapnel on his right cheek. Talking to The News, Naseeb said that after collecting his passport, he went to Khyber Bazaar for shopping. He said there was rush at the time of the blast, adding that soon after the incident the entire area was covered with a cloud of dust, rendering people unable to see anything. He said as the dust settled, he saw bodies lying scattered at the scene, while the injured were crying for help. After the incident, the city was gripped by a wave of fear, grief and despondency. The traders association of Khyber Bazaar announced a three-day mourning.

compensation for blast victims

The Pukhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti on Friday announced compensation for the deadly blast victims of Khyber Bazaar. This was announced by NWFP Minister for Information Mian Iftikhar Hussain in a press statement here. He said that Chief Minister has announced Rs.300,000 for each deceased and Rs. one lakh for each critical injured. He directed the DCO Peshawar to prepare list of the deceased and injured of the Khyber Bazaar's blast victims at earliest in order to provide them quick compensation.

49 killed, 100 hurt in Peshawar suicide blast

PESHAWAR: A massive suicide car bomb Friday ripped through Khyber market in Peshawar, leaving at least 49 people dead, officials said.The blast in a shopping area close to the northwestern city's main Khyber Bazaar also wounded more than 100 people, provincial health minister Zahir Ali Shah told reporters."At least 49 people were killed and more than 100 injured in the blast," Shah told reporters in the main Lady Reading Hospital,doctor Mehboob Ali at the hospital confirmed the toll and put the number of wounded at 103. The injured included women and children, he said.
More than 50 people were in serious condition, he said.
Police official Mohammad Karim estimated the size of the bomb at around 100 kilogrammes (220 pounds), while Shafqat Malik, chief of the bomb disposal squad, confirmed that a suicide attacker had detonated the bomb.
The device was planted in the door panels of the vehicle and included machinegun ammunition, designed to cause maximum casualties, Malik said.
"The suicide attacker was sitting in the vehicle," he added.Another police official, Nisar Marwat, said the death toll could rise, given that some of the wounded were in critical condition."We have declared an emergency in the hospitals," Local administration chief Sahibzada Mohammad Anis told reporters.

Pakistan Car Bombing Kills Dozens

‘Doomsday’ blast kills 41 near Pakistan bazaar

PESHAWAR, Pakistan - A suicide car bomber detonated his vehicle along a road near a well-known market in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar on Friday, killing 41 people and underscoring militants' ability to strike in major cities despite U.S.-backed military offensives pressuring their networks.


The attack in the Khyber Bazaar area came as Pakistan's army prepares for another major operation in the al-Qaida and Taliban stronghold of South Waziristan tribal region. The militants have threatened bombings if the army doesn't back off, but the U.S. has continued to prod Pakistan to take action against insurgents using its soil to fuel the insurgency in neighboring Afghanistan.

Television footage showed the charred skeleton of a bus flipped on its side in the middle of a major road. Twisted remains of a motorbike lay alongside the bus. A nearby vehicle was in flames.

Noor Alam saw the vehicle explode, and suffered wounds on his legs and face.

"I saw a blood soaked leg landing close to me," Alam told The Associated Press at the overwhelmed Lady Reading hospital. "I understood for the first time in my life what a doomsday would look like."

Blast levels passing minibus
Peshawar Police Chief Liaqat Ali Khan said the attacker was in a car packed with "a huge quantity of explosives and artillery rounds." A minibus apparently carrying passengers nearby was also leveled in the blast.

It came days after a suicide attack killed five at a U.N. office in the capital, Islamabad and two weeks after another explosion killed 11 in a Peshawar commercial area.

It was the deadliest attack in Pakistan since a suicide bomber demolished a packed mosque near the northwestern town of Jamrud in March, killing about 50.

Provincial Health Minister Syed Zahir Ali Shah said 41 people were killed and more than 100 wounded Friday.

"Death has to come one day, but we will keep chasing these terrorists, and this attack cannot deter our resolve," Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said as he visited the bloody scene.

Arrest in attack on U.N. offices
Also Friday, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said a suspect had been arrested in Monday's suicide attack at the office of the U.N.'s World Food Program in Islamabad. Malik says the man was alleged to have given the attacker shelter, but gave few details.

Militants in Pakistan also have targeted trucks carrying supplies for U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Early Friday, militants ambushed a tanker carrying fuel for the Western troops at a gas station near Peshawar, torching it, said Fazal Rabi, a police official. No injuries or deaths were reported.

U.S.-Pakistan tensions rising
The attacks come amid growing tensions between the U.S. and Pakistan over a multibillion-dollar U.S. aid package that is aimed at helping Pakistan's economy and other nonmilitary sectors.

Pakistan's army has raised concern over strings attached to the aid, bolstering critics who say it will invite U.S. interference.

The debate over the proposal also has exposed rifts between Pakistan's military and its weak civilian government.

The government has hailed the package, which would provide $1.5 billion a year over the next five years. But the measure, which awaits President Barack Obama's signature, makes U.S. aid contingent on whether Pakistan's government maintains effective control over the military, among other conditions.

The army, which has ruled Pakistan for around half its 62-year existence, raised "serious concern" over the conditions, while the government said nothing in it was against Pakistan's interests.

Nobel peace prize awarded to Barack Obama

The US president, Barack Obama, was today awarded the 2009 Nobel peace prize "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and co-operation between peoples".

The Nobel committee said "only rarely has a person such as Obama captured the world's attention and given his people hope for a better future".

"His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population," the citation said.

The committee said Obama, who only took up the presidency in January, had been acknowledged for his calls to reduce the world's stockpile of nuclear weapons and working for world peace.

"Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play."

The first African American to hold the country's highest office, Obama has called for disarmament and attempted - so far without success - to restart the stalled Middle East peace process. He is currently considering whether to increase troop numbers in Afghanistan where the US is mired in an eight-year-old conflict.

The choice of Obama for the prize from a field of more than 200 candidates astounded international commentators, in part because he took office less than two weeks before the February nomination deadline.

His name had been mentioned in speculation before the award but many Nobel watchers believed it was too early to award it to the president.

Michael Cox, a North America expert at the Chatham House thinktank, said: "It is difficult to see why it would be awarded to him at this stage in his presidency. There are problems in the Middle East and an ongoing war in Afghanistan. You could say it is a little bit premature. It is certainly a very interesting choice."

The committee said that for 108 years it had sought to stimulate precisely the international policy and attitudes for which Obama is now the world's leading spokesman.

"The committee endorses Obama's appeal that 'Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges'."

Former US presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson won the award in 1906 and 1919 respectively. Former president Jimmy Carter won the award in 2002 for his "decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflict".

The former US vice-president Al Gore shared the 2007 prize with the UN panel on climate change.

The prize, worth 10 million Swedish crowns (£880,000), will be awarded in Oslo next month.

Peshawar suicide car blast kills 41, wounds 100

PESHAWAR: A suicide car bomber detonated his vehicle along a road near a well-known market in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar on Friday, killing 41 people.

The attack in the Khyber Bazaar area came as Pakistan's army prepares for another major operation in the al-Qaeda and Taliban stronghold of South Waziristan tribal region. The militants have threatened bombings if the army doesn't back off.

Television footage showed the charred skeleton of a bus flipped on its side in the middle of a major road. Twisted remains of a motorbike lay alongside the bus. A nearby vehicle was in flames.

Noor Alam saw the vehicle explode, and suffered wounds on his legs and face.

‘I saw a blood soaked leg landing close to me,’ Alam told The Associated Press at the overwhelmed Lady Reading hospital. ‘I understood for the first time in my life what a doomsday would look like.’

Peshawar Police Chief Liaqat Ali Khan said the attacker was in a car packed with ‘a huge quantity of explosives and artillery rounds.’

A minibus apparently carrying passengers nearby was also levelled in the blast.

It came days after a suicide attack killed five at a UN office in the capital, Islamabad and two weeks after another explosion killed 11 in a Peshawar commercial area.

It was the deadliest attack in Pakistan since a suicide bomber demolished a packed mosque near the northwestern town of Jamrud in March, killing about 50.

Provincial Health Minister Syed Zahir Ali Shah said 41 people were killed and more than 100 wounded Friday.

‘Death has to come one day, but we will keep chasing these terrorists, and this attack cannot deter our resolve,’ Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said as he visited the bloody scene.

Also Friday, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said a suspect had been arrested in Monday's suicide attack at the office of the UN's World Food Program in Islamabad.

Malik says the man was alleged to have given the attacker shelter, but gave few details.