ISLAMABAD, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Two suicide blasts
occurred in Pakistan's cantonment city Wah Cantt on Thursday, leaving 76 people
dead and 110 others injured, according to state-run PTV.
It is the second suicide attack within three days in
Pakistan, a sign that the terrorists activities have reached a new height.
Pakistani police stand near the body of
a suspected suicide bomber at the site of suicide bombing at a gate of
Pakistan's ordinance factory in Wah, a garrison city about 30 km (20
miles) northwest of Islamabad Aug. 21, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters
Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
The blasts took place at the main gate and another
gate of Pakistan Ordnance Factory in Wah Cantt, some 50 km northwest from
Islamabad.
Two suicide bomber blew themselves up at the time
when the shift was changed and a lot of workers were leaving the factory in a
bid to cause maximum casualties.
A militant organization Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan
(TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack. The TTP spokesman Maulvi Umar asked
the security forces to stop their operations in the northwestern part and tribal
areas, private TV channel Ary One World reported.
It is worth mentioning that the group was also
responsible for a suicide blast at a hospital in North West Frontier Province
(NWFP) on Tuesday. As many as 23 people were killed in the attack.
He warned that more attacks would be conducted in
other places during the coming two days if the operations were not terminated.
As always, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza
Gillani strongly condemned the bomb blasts and directed the authorities to make
efforts to expose the hidden hands behind the incident and bring them to
justice.
However, it seems that there
is still a long way for the country to defeat the menace of
terrorism.
Pakistani police and bomb disposal
officials examine the site of suicide bombing at a gate of
Pakistan's ordinance factory in Wah, a garrison city about 30 km (20
miles) northwest of Islamabad Aug. 21, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters
Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
The Pakistani government has made it clear that a
multi-faceted strategy will be adopted to win a war against terrorism. After the
coalition government came into being at the end of March, the administration
initiated peace talks with militants in the northwestern part of the country.
As the talks with militant groups were nearing an
end, the Pakistani government was facing mounting pressure from the United
States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which were fighting
Taliban in Afghanistan.
The NATO spokesman Mark Laity in late May urged
Pakistan to avoid agreements that "put our troops and our mission under threat."
The U.S. officials also voiced their concern that Islamabad's peace talks with
militants could preclude a rise in attacks in Afghanistan.
The Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama
even threatened to send troops to Pakistan to hunt down militants.
At the end of June, Gillani gave full authority to
the army chief in connection with the military operation in northwestern
Pakistan. The security forces launched a major operation against militants
thereafter.
During his visit to the U.S. in July, Gillani pledged
that Pakistan would continue its fight against terrorists.
"We are committed to fight against those extremists and terrorists who are destroying and making the world not safe," Gillani said.
Gillani sought the cooperation from the U.S. for
economic stabilization to overcome financial, energy and food problems.
Pakistan is currently facing high inflation and its
economy has shown signs of slowdown, making the U.S. financial aid for Pakistan
more significant.
On the other hand, lawmakers in the U.S. called for a
review of its financial aid to Pakistan. They proposed that the aid should be
based on Pakistan's performance in fighting militants.
After the resignation of former President Pervez
Musharraf who used to be called a key ally of the U.S. against terrorism, the
TTP said that they would support the coalition government if they rejected
Musharraf's anti-terror policy. However, Gillani said the government would
continue to fight terrorism.
Thus the security across Pakistan will be put on high
alert as the militants are pondering more attacks.
ISLAMABAD, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- As many as 65 people died
and 76 others were injured in two suicide blasts in eastern Pakistan's Punjab
province on Thursday, state-run PTV reported.
The blasts occurred at two gates of the Pakistan Ordnance
Factory in Wah Cantt when the shift was changed, said the report. Full story
BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- The intensity of the
behind-the-scenes power struggle on the Pakistani political arena could be felt
when Pervez Musharraf abruptly changed his decision to attend the summer
Olympiad's opening gala and sent Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani instead.
It was after three days of consecutive meetings that
Musharraf's bitter rivals, the Pakistan's People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan
Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), on Aug. 7 finally ironed out their differences and
announced they would launch an impeachment against the president. Full story
