Pakistan - attack

Bomb blast rocks Islamic university

Article published on the 2009-10-20 Latest update 2009-10-21 07:53 TU

Women's campus, Islamic International University, Islamabad
(Credit: Wikipedia)

At least five people were killed and 22 wounded in two bomb blasts at the International Islamic university in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad on Tuesday. The near-simultaneous bomb blasts went off in both the male and female campuses. Eyewitnesses say that there was a lot of smoke and noise as paramedics rushed to the scene to take care of the wounded.

Several of the wounded were in a serious condition, said Altaf Hussein, a spokesman for Islamabad's main PIMS Hospital.

"We have also received body parts including one severed leg that we cannot identify," said Hussein.

Pakistan has seen a recent spike in spectacular attacks this month, in which more than 170 people have died. One attack was on the army headquarters in Rawalpindi next to Islamabad.

Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants have been blamed for a two-year campaign of suicide bombings and commando raids that have killed 2,250 people. The attacks began after security forces raided a radical mosque in the capital in July 2007.

Pakistan on Saturday launched a massive offensive against Taliban militants in South Waziristan, part of the country's tribal belt on the Afghan border where Al-Qaeda-linked rebels are allegedly plotting attacks. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for today's attack.