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Attackers fire rockets at Pak airport, no injuries or damage
Islamabad, Sept 07: Attackers fired three rockets at an airport housing Pakistan military troops hunting for al-qaida and taliban fugitives, but there were no injuries or damage, a military official said today.
Islamabad, Sept 07: Attackers fired three rockets at an airport housing Pakistan military troops hunting for al-qaida and taliban fugitives, but there were no injuries or damage, a military official said today.
The attack occurred late on Friday in Bannu, about 250 kilometres southwest of the capital, Islamabad, said Maj Gen Shaukat Sultan, a military spokesman.
There was no claim of responsibility and sultan said officials were investigating who was responsible. "We are ascertaining details of the attack," he said.
Two rockets exploded in deserted areas inside the airport grounds. The third rocket failed to explode, he said.
Bannu is located at the edge of a tribal region where Pakistani and US officials are searching for al-Qaida and Taliban fugitives, who are believed to use Pakistani soil to launch attacks into neighbouring Afghanistan.
Local residents reported on Thursday that the Pakistani military has stepped up activity in the area, sending dozens of helicopters to Bannu airport. Some helicopters were spotted carrying "foreign" troops, a reference to American forces. The helicopters were flying over the tribal area near Bannu.
Pakistan's military has said it deployed the troops in Bannu for a "routine exercise."
A resident of Bannu, Inayat Khan, said yesterday that he heard explosions around the airport.
The tribal region borders Afghanistan. Sympathies among the tribesman run high for the Taliban because many share the ousted militia's harsh interpretation of Islam and its Pashtun ethnicity.
Bureau Report
There was no claim of responsibility and sultan said officials were investigating who was responsible. "We are ascertaining details of the attack," he said.
Two rockets exploded in deserted areas inside the airport grounds. The third rocket failed to explode, he said.
Bannu is located at the edge of a tribal region where Pakistani and US officials are searching for al-Qaida and Taliban fugitives, who are believed to use Pakistani soil to launch attacks into neighbouring Afghanistan.
Local residents reported on Thursday that the Pakistani military has stepped up activity in the area, sending dozens of helicopters to Bannu airport. Some helicopters were spotted carrying "foreign" troops, a reference to American forces. The helicopters were flying over the tribal area near Bannu.
Pakistan's military has said it deployed the troops in Bannu for a "routine exercise."
A resident of Bannu, Inayat Khan, said yesterday that he heard explosions around the airport.
The tribal region borders Afghanistan. Sympathies among the tribesman run high for the Taliban because many share the ousted militia's harsh interpretation of Islam and its Pashtun ethnicity.
Bureau Report