PAKISTAN

PAKISTAN BLAST(12-06-2011)

34 killed, 80 hurt in Peshawar twin blasts

        At least 34 people, including a journalist, were killed and 80 others injured when two bombs were detonated near the offices of media organizations at a supermarket in Pakistan's Peshawar city late Saturday night,12^TH June,2011, media reports said.The blasts took place at the Khyber supermarket in downtown Peshawar, the capital of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Xinhua reported quoting the local Urdu TV channel Samaa. The first blast occurred at 23.40 p.m. It was relatively of low intensity and three people were injured. The explosives were placed on a motorbike,


       The second explosion, which took place minutes later and was of bigger intensity, was carried out through a remote-control device. It took place as a rescue team reached the site of the first blast. Over 20 shops were destroyed and a huge fire broke out at the market after the blasts.
Some media offices near the blast site were damaged and at least one journalist was killed while three others injured, according to Xinhua.The injured were taken to the Lady Reading Hospital, largest in Peshawar.Hospital sources said the toll could increase as many of the injured were in critical condition. Many people were buried under the debris of collapsed buildings.Rescue officials said it could take hours to pull out the trapped people from the debris of the collapsed buildings.Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani have strongly condemned the attack. Meanwhile, Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.

                                                                            Prof. John Kurakar