Islamabad: At least 13 people,
including women and children, were killed and nine others
injured today in a powerful explosion outside the home of a
provincial minister in Quetta and a landmine blast in Kurram
tribal area, the latest in a slew of terror strikes across
Pakistan.
The blast in Kurram region occurred when a vehicle hit a
landmine, killing 10 people and injuring six others, witnesses
and local officials said.
About 20 people were travelling in the vehicle, which hit
the landmine in Dole Ragha area. They were returning home to
celebrate the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr festival.
Several women and children were among the dead, officials
said.
No group claimed responsibility for the blast, but
Taliban militants have stepped up attacks ahead of Eid across
the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan.
In a separate incident, a powerful bomb went off outside
the home of a provincial minister at Quetta in southwest
Pakistan, killing three people and injuring as many others.
The bomb is believed to have been planted in an SUV
parked at the residence of Balochistan Finance Minister Mir
Asim Kurd Giloo in the posh Railway Housing Society. Giloo was
not at home when the explosive device went off, police said.
Three persons -- an employee and a security guard of the
minister and the driver of a tractor-tanker that was
delivering water to the house -- were killed by the explosion,
they said.
Witnesses said their body parts were strewn all over the
blast site.
Giloo, who was at the provincial secretariat, rushed back
to his home but police barred him from going inside. The
minister and his family were taken away to an undisclosed
location by police.
Police officials said it was yet to be determined how the
bomb was planted in the vehicle.
The blast blew out the windows of nearby buildings and
triggered a minor fire at the minister`s home that was
controlled by the fire brigade.
No group claimed responsibility for this blast as well.
Several ministers, bureaucrats and political leaders have
their homes in the Railway Housing Society.
Quetta has witnessed an upsurge in violence, including
bomb blasts and suicide attacks, in the past few days. Nearly
70 people were killed when a suicide bomber targeted a rally
organised by Shia students in the city last week.
Kurram tribal agency has also witnessed sectarian
violence and militant attacks in recent times.
PTI
