Quetta: A suicide bomber attacked a hospital emergency room where Shi’ite Muslims had gathered on Friday to mourn a slain bank manager, killing at least eight people including a journalist in Pakistan's main southwest city, police said.
The explosion in Quetta underscored the poor security conditions in Pakistan, a US ally where sectarian violence remains a problem even as al Qaeda and Taliban militants pose a growing — and linked — threat. It wasn't the first time that Shi’ite mourners have been attacked at hospitals in Pakistan, evidence of a tactic in vogue for their Sunni extremist foes.
Gunshots rang out after the explosion at the Civil Hospital, and rescuers carried away the dead and wounded, TV footage showed.
Among the eight dead was a cameraman working for Pakistan's Samaa TV, said Saifuddin Khan, a hospital official.
Two policemen also died, while 35 people were wounded in the apparent "sectarian attack," said Qazi Abdul Wahid, a senior police investigator.
Journalists were at the hospital covering the aftermath of Friday's morning shooting death of the Shi’ite bank manager. The emergency room was full of the man's friends and relatives when the bomber detonated his weapons at the gate, police official Mohammad Sabir said.
Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan province, and it is believed to be a major centre for the leadership of the Afghan Taliban. However, the violence that occurs in Baluchistan has been blamed on Baluch separatist groups or tensions between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims.
Bureau Report
First Published: Friday, April 16, 2010, 12:51