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http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2008/s08030069.htm

ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net — E-mail: assistnews@aol.com

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Pakistan Suicide Bombs Claim 31 Lives
Blasts Damaged Federal Building, Missionary Schools, Cathedral Church and Relief Agency

By Sheraz Khurram Khan
Special Correspondent for ASSIST News Service in Pakistan
LAHORE, PAKISTAN (ANS) — Twin suicide bombs killed at least 31 people and injured 200 in the eastern city of Lahore on Tuesday.

A story by the Chicago Tribune’s Kim Barker said the incidents deepened the crisis in the troubled nation, and increased the pressure on embattled President Pervez Musharraf, blamed by many for instability in the country.

The Tribune reported that in Lahore, police officials said one bomb targeted the seven-story headquarters of the federal police, which investigates terrorism and human trafficking, and killed at least 16 officers.

According to the Tribune, another car bomb exploded at a house near the rented Lahore home of Asif Ali Zardari, the leader of the Pakistan People’s Party, which won the largest amount of seats in last month’s parliamentary elections. There was no clear target for the blast, which killed a gardener and his two children at the home of a man who runs an advertising company.

The federal police building sits opposite to the Catholic Church’s leading non-governmental organization, Caritas, the front side of which was razed.

Caritas International is a confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations helping the poor and oppressed.

“The explosion was so powerful that it was heard within the one-two kilometer range. It felt as an earthquake had hit the area. The blast left the window panes shattered,” said Sohail Johnson, the chief coordinator of the Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan (SLMP), speaking from the scene of the incident..

According to Johnson, whose team visited the Convent of the Dominicans sisters, located close to the Caritas building, at least eight nuns suffered critical injuries in the wake of the blast.

Pictures from the Pakistan bombing

Nuns were too fear-stricken to say anything, Johnson said.

Johnson said he saw injured people wailing for help. He said that human limbs were scattered all over the place in a pool of blood. Johnson said there were about 500 people in the federal building when the bomber struck.

The blasts also panicked teachers and students in the Sacred Heart School, a Catholic Church school close to the targeted federal building, he said.

“We saw blood stained floors of the school classrooms,” Johnson said. “A school teacher who did not wish to be named told (us) that it took her some time to (realize) what had happened. (After a while) ... we asked the students to leave the classrooms. Shards of glass left several students of the school injured.”

Johnson said the explosion also damaged the Cathedral Church, which is close to the Caritas building. The main door of the church was broken, and window panes of the nearby buildings totally shattered.

Center for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement Chief Joseph Francis said that following the blast, the generator located on the Caritas building fell down, adding to the damage. He said that the blast also destroyed an office in the Caritas building.

Anila Gull, the National Executive of Caritas Pakistan said in a news release, “We condemn this act of terror, which has killed indiscriminately and injured many, including Caritas staff. There can be no justification for this crime. Caritas Pakistan is committed to building peace in every way it can.”

Caritas International President Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez said in a news release, “It’s with great sadness that we see the bloodshed continue to destabilize Pakistan. That Caritas staff who are committed to building peace have been caught up in the blasts only adds to the tragedy. The country needs strong leadership at this time to find peace through dialogue. Violent attacks such as these can never bring about just, peaceful solutions.”

The Chairman of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (AMPA) condemned the blast. He did not rule out the possibility of attacks on Churches and Christian properties amid continuing protests by angry Muslims over cartoons of Prophet Muhammad.

Sheraz Khurram Khan has been reporting from Pakistan for ASSIST News Service on Christian persecution and minorities’ situation since 2005. He is also a representative of the International Press Association (IPA), USA.

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