Pakistan

Two blasts in Marriott attack, ministry blames Al-Qaeda

Article published on the 2008-09-21 Latest update 2008-09-21 14:08 TU

The search for clues in the wreckage of the Marriott
(Photo: Reuters)

Pakistan television on Sunday broadcast a closed-circuit video from Islamabad's Marriott Hotel which showed the attacker ramming the gates with his lorry and blowing himself up when guards stopped him passing through. The small blast apparently came minutes before the huge explosion which cost at least 53 lives, according to the latest reports.

The footage shows the driver failing to convince guards to let him through and then blowing himself up. The guards can be seen hesitating for a short time before rushing to put out the fire caused by the blast.

The devastating second explosion of the lorry which was carrying 600 kilos of explosives, followed a few minutes later, destroying the camera and causing massive damage to the hotel.

Czech ambassador Ivo Zdarek was among the dead.

The Interior Ministry on Sunday blamed Al-Qaeda, working with Taliban based near the Afghan border, for the attack.

More than 200 people are reported wounded. The attack took place as many people were breaking the ramadan fast and gas cylinders in the kitchen were ignited, spreading a fire through the the hotel.

Investigators are combing the site for evidence, but temperatures were reported to be still high on Sunday.

An attack in a sensitive area near the National Assembly building has placed a question mark over government claims that security was improving, says Islambad journalist Omar Waraich.

"Just yesterday, after the President’s speech, the Interior Ministry chief Mr Rehmann Malik was claiming that his government had done much to reduce terrorism – up to 90 per cent," he told RFI. "But the fact that a large dumptruck could make its way in this sensitive area and right up to the Marriott is raising very serious questions about the competence of security officials in the city."

President Asif Ali Zardari, who had given his first address to parliament shortly before the attack, made a television declaration after midnight.

"Make this pain your strength," he told the nation. "This is a menace, a cancer in Pakistan which we will eliminate. We will not be scared of these cowards."

Zardari is set to meet US President George Bush in Washington Tuesday.