Pakistan bus bombing kills at least 8

No claim of responsibility for Punjab province blast

June 30, 1997
Web posted at: 11:13 a.m. EDT (1513 GMT)

PUNJAB PROVINCE, Pakistan (CNN) -- A bomb ripped through a passenger bus in eastern Punjab province early Monday, killing eight people and injuring 21, police said. An unconfirmed report by ambulance workers said 20 were dead and 50 injured.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the 6:15 a.m. (0115 GMT) bombing near Sialkot, 120 miles east of Islamabad. The bus was traveling to Sialkot from Lakhanal near the Indian border. Many of the passengers were day laborers, hospital doctors said.

Workers with the privately run Edhi Ambulance services who spoke by telephone said the bus was carrying at least 80 passengers. Police said 20 people had been sitting atop the bus.

The bomb apparently was planted under the rear seat of the bus, ambulance driver Shaukat Ali said. The back half of the bus was destroyed and the front half was badly burned, he said.

Most of the injured suffered from burns, Ali said.

"It was horrific. Everyone at the back of the bus died immediately," he said. "It was not possible to escape."

Recent attacks related to a feud between militant Shiite Muslims and Sunni Muslims in Punjab have killed more than 100 people so far this year. But police said there was no immediate evidence that the bombing was linked to the dispute.

Reuters contributed to this report.

 

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Related sites:

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• Pakistan Link
  • Two children killed in bomb blast in Karachi
• DAWN Newspaper, Pakistan
• Pakistan Information

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