Suicide bomber kills one in Pakistan navy HQ attack
PAKISTAN - 2 DECEMBER 2009
ISLAMABAD A suicide bomber attacked Pakistan's navy headquarters in the capital Islamabad on Wednesday, killing a naval policeman and injuring 11 others in the latest blast in the insurgency-hit nation.
A young man walked up to a checkpoint at the entrance to the complex and detonated his explosives when challenged by security forces. The blast scattered body parts across the busy city centre road, police and witnesses said.
Islamist insurgents frequently target military installations and attacks have intensified as Islamabad pursues a fierce military offensive, under Western pressure to do more to eliminate Taliban and Al-Qaeda sanctuaries.
Wednesday's blast came after US President Barack Obama announced he was sending 30,000 more troops to battle the Taliban in Afghanistan, and said that success in the war there depended on Pakistan's own fight against extremism.
Fazeel Asghar, the city authorities' top administrative official, told reporters that a man aged around 17 or 18 and wearing a suicide jacket approached the heavily-guarded naval complex on foot.
"Security officials checked him and one navy police constable, Mohammad Ashraf, asked him to take off his coat. The bomber then blew himself up and the navy constable died in the blast," he said.
Navy spokesman Captain Mubeen Bajwa said security guards stopped the bomber after a taxi driver complained about his suspicious behaviour.
"A total of 11 people were injured, including five soldiers of the Pakistan navy and six civilians. One of them is critically injured," he said.
Witnesses described the scene in the aftermath of the blast, which shattered car windows and left blood streaked across the road: "I was in a nearby street when I heard a loud explosion," said witness Imtiaz Ali.
"When I reached the main Margalla Road there was smoke near the navy complex. I saw three soldiers lying wounded."
President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the suicide attack, saying that "such incidents would not deter the government's resolve to fight terrorism and extremism from the country", a government statement said.
The attack came a day after a Pakistani provincial lawmaker was killed in a suicide attack in the northwestern valley of Swat, and as Taliban insurgents have intensified attacks to avenge the military's multi-pronged offensive.
The military are a frequent target: a brazen raid and hostage siege at the army headquarters in the garrison city of Rawalpindi in October hit the heart of the country's most powerful establishment.
Islamabad itself was last hit in late October, when twin suicide blasts tore through the International Islamic University, killing up to five people.
Source: AFP
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