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Bomb Blast Outside U.S. Consulate in Pakistan Kills 11
Saturday, June 15, 2002
(12:19)
By Safiullah Gul
Pravda.ru

"I heard a deafening explosion," Sharif Ajnabi, a private security guard, said. "There was smoke everywhere. "Moments later, I saw a man's body flying in the air, and it fell near me. He was badly injured. Before we could give him water or medical help, he died. It was a horrifying scene."

At least 11 people, including women and three Frontier Constabulary personnel, were killed and 50 others injured when a suicide assailant crashed an explosive-laden Suzuki car into a guard post just outside the American Consulate in the Pakistani port city of Karachi on Friday. Coming hot on the heels of US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's tension-defusing mission to the region, the massive explosion caused structural damage to the consulate building, a hotel and other property in the immediate vicinity.

Though no group or individual has so far claimed responsibility for the murderous attack, yet officials suspected the blast could be the handiwork of disgruntled extremist elements linked to the al-Qaeda network.

The perimeter wall of the establishment was damaged, witnesses said, adding panicked US marines swung into action immediately after the bombing. "They took up positions around the consulate," an official at the scene said.

The victims -- all believed to be Pakistanis -- included women and six men. A 35-year-old man, his spouse and their infant child, riding on a motorcycle, were also killed, police said, revealing body parts were scattered all over the place.

They believed it was a suicide assault targeting foreigners, the second in about a month's time. Initial reports said the fatalities did not include any American staffers of the consulate. A number of police officials, who were on duty outside the premises, also sustained injuries in the powerful blast that rocked the nearby buildings and caused security scares in this commercial hub.

Two of the women victims were identified as Farkhanda Jabeen, wife of Hasan Ashraf, and Nida Nazir, daughter of Muhammad Nazir, while paramilitary troopers Arsalan Khan, Shahbaz Ali Khan and Fajoor Khan were also confirmed dead.
(More: Pravda.ru News Source)
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