Islamabad: A top pro-government militant
commander, his son-in-law and two others were killed by a
suicide bomber on Monday on the outskirts of Pakistan`s restive
Peshawar city.
The suicide bomber struck a house being built by Haji
Akhundzada, a leader of the Ansar-ul-Islam group, in Pakha
Ghulam area, about 10 km from the capital of northwestern
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, killing four persons, including
the tribal leader. Eight other people were injured in the
blast.
The identity of the third man who was killed could not be
immediately ascertained.
Officials at Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar said the
eight injured persons, including two children, were admitted.
They described the condition of five persons as serious.
Siraj Ahmed Khan, the chief of the Peshawar district
administration, confirmed the death of Akhundzada and his
son-in-law.
He said the attack was linked to rivalry between militant
groups that are active in the restive Khyber tribal region.
Other officials said they had found the body parts of the
bomber.
No group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Akhundzada had survived several attacks in the past,
local residents said.
Footage on television showed debris strewn at the site of
the attack as investigators gathered clues.
The walls of several houses were pitted by shrapnel that
was packed into the bomber`s explosive vest.
Several militant groups, including the Taliban and the
Lashkar-e-Islam, are active in the Khyber Agency.
PTI
