PESHAWAR, Pakistan, March 13, (AFP) - At least ten people were killed in a suicide attack in Pakistan's Swat valley on Saturday, a day after a series of bombings brought chaos and bloodshed to the city of Lahore, police said.
The bomber blew himself up in Saidu Sharif, on the southern outskirts of Mingora, the main town of Swat, where the military said several months ago it had quelled a Taliban uprising.
"A total of ten people have been killed and 37 were wounded. It was a suicide attack," senior police official Qazi Jamil told AFP by telephone. Three security personnel and a nine year old child were also among the dead.
"The suicide bomber was on foot. He was trying to enter the building and blew himself up after being stopped by police," he said.
A spokesman for the army-run Swat media centre also confirmed the death toll and told AFP by telephone that two policemen and one soldier were killed.
The area was cordoned off by security forces while all shops and markets were immediately closed, residents said. "Some 20 vehicles were also damaged in this blast. The bomber was carrying 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of explosive," Jamil added.
On Friday, twin suicide attacks seconds apart targeted the Pakistani military, killing 57 people in the crowded R A Bazaar area of Lahore. |
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