[ 2011-05-13 ]

Some victims of the bomb attack

Pakistan paramilitary Shaqbadar base bombings 'kill 80'
Twin bomb attacks on a paramilitary force academy
in north-west Pakistan have killed 80 people,
police say.

A number of people were hurt in the blasts at the
training centre for the Frontier Constabulary in
Shabqadar, Charsadda district.

After early suspicions that one of the bombs was
planted, police now say both blasts were caused by
suicide attacks.

The Pakistani Taliban said they carried out the
attack to avenge the death of Osama Bin Laden
earlier this month.

The al-Qaeda leader was killed during a US
commando raid in the northern Pakistani town of
Abbottabad on 2 May.

'Deadliest attack'

The bombings happened as newly trained cadets from
the Frontier Constabulary were getting into buses
for a short leave after completing their course.

The Frontier Constabulary is a frontline force
often deployed against militants - including the
Taliban - in the tribal areas.

"I was sitting in a van waiting for my colleagues.
We were in plain clothes and we were happy we were
going to see our families," Ahmad Ali, a wounded
paramilitary policeman, told AFP news agency.

"I heard someone shouting 'Allahu Akbar' [God is
great] and then I heard a huge blast. I was hit by
something in my back shoulder.

"In the meantime, I heard another blast and I
jumped out of the van. I felt that I was injured
and bleeding."

At least 65 of the dead were recruits, but there
were also civilian casualties, officials say.

The injured were taken to a local hospital and
security forces sealed off the area.

A number of vehicles were destroyed in the blast.

"It's the first revenge for the martyrdom of...
bin Laden. There will be more," Taliban spokesman
Ehsanullah Ehsan told the Reuters news agency by
telephone from an undisclosed location.

Shabqadar lies on the border with Afghanistan,
about 35km (22 miles) north-west of Peshawar, not
far from the militant stronghold of Mohmand.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool, in Islamabad, says the
security forces have often been the target of such
attacks as they fight the Pakistani Taliban across
the north-west of the country, but Friday's
bombing is the deadliest attack this year.

He adds that the Pakistani army - which has come
under intense scrutiny and criticism over the Bin
Laden affair - is likely to point out that this
attack is an illustration of the sacrifices it has
made in the so-called "war on terror".

Later on Friday, army chiefs are expected to
appear in parliament to explain their actions over
the death of Bin Laden.

Our correspondent says many politicians and
members of the public appear to be less concerned
about Bin Laden's presence in Pakistan and more
about the way the US was able to carry out its
raid without official permission.

The US gives billions of dollars in military and
humanitarian aid to Pakistan, but has questioned
its reliability as an ally in combating the
militants.

In recent years, Taliban militants have killed
hundreds of people in bombings and other attacks
across Pakistan.

Source - BBC

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