- Title: PAKISTAN: Five killed in suicide bombing in Swat valley
- Date: 16th July 2010
- Summary: INJURED WOMAN BEING TAKEN OUT OF AMBULANCE AND RUSHED TO HOSPITAL INJURED BOY BEING TAKEN OUT OF AMBULANCE INJURED WOMAN BEING RUSHED INTO EMERGENCY INJURED MAN BEING WHEELED IN ON STRETCHER PANNING SHOT OF EMERGENCY WARD VARIOUS OF DOCTORS TREATING INJURED RELATIVES STANDING BY INJURED MAN HOSPITAL STAFF CHECKING POCKETS OF INJURED MAN CLOSE OF INJURED MAN DOCTOR
- Embargoed: 31st July 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Pakistan
- Country: Pakistan
- Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement
- Reuters ID: LVA9ZGIBGXB1W2LQZ5KV0X7TNQ3K
- Story Text: A suicide bomber kills five people and wounds dozens in an apparent attack on a security forces' convoy in Pakistan's Swat valley.
A suicide bomber killed five people and wounded 40 in an apparent attack on a security forces' convoy in Pakistan's Swat valley on Thursday (July 15) , officials and witnesses said.
"I was going to work when I heard a blast. I looked around and saw parts of cars strewn all over the place. Peoples' legs were also lying around. It was like hell let loose," an unidentified resident of Mingora told Reuters Television.
Eight vehicles, including two of the security forces, were damaged and a woman passer-by was among the dead in the attack that happened near the town's main bus stand. There were no casualties among the security forces, police said.
Intelligence officials put the death toll at seven and said the attacker appeared to have been on foot, an account supported supported by a witness.
Siddique Jan, the driver of a bus said the man was sitting in his bus and, as soon as the bus pulled over at the stop, he jumped down and ran towards security forces' vehicles after which there was a big explosion.
Some severely-injured people were taken to the Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar for treatment.
The bombing struck the Mingora town after a relative lull in the valley, where the military launched a major offensive last year. The army says the valley has largely been cleared of militants, though some have been able to strike at times. The latest attack will fuel fear of a Taliban comeback in Swat and will also hurt government efforts to lure visitors back to the valley, once a famous tourist resort.
After scoring significant gains in Swat, in October the military launched another major offensive on South Waziristan, a militant bastion on the Afghan border. The offensive was extended to Orakzai in March as many of the militants who fled the South Waziristan operation took refuge there. Hundreds of militants have since been killed in airstrikes in Orakzai. In the latest strike, jet fighters killed 20 militants and destroyed six of their hideouts in Orakzai on Thursday. There was no independent verification of casualties and militants often dispute the military's accounts.
But despite losing ground in military offensive, the Pakistani Taliban, who are allies of the Afghan Taliban, have shown the ability to hit back and carry out a wave of bomb and suicide attacks across Pakistan in recent months. An attack in northwestern Mohmand tribal region killed 107 people last week. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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