Residents in the Pakistani capital Islamabad were facing tightened security checks on Wednesday in the wake of a suicide bombing that left top officials vowing to halt the rise in deadly attacks.<\/p>\n
The deadly blast outside district court buildings on Tuesday was claimed by a faction of the Pakistani Taliban, a militant group that has been behind a series of attacks in other parts of the country.<\/p>\n
The district court remained closed on Wednesday while security was stepped up at other court buildings across the city, and long queues of vehicles formed at checkpoints.<\/p>\n
“Our army, police, and all law enforcement agencies are alert and performing their duties. Unfortunately, the question remains: Where are these attacks coming from, and how are they happening?” said resident Fazal Satar, 58.<\/p>\n
At least 12 people were killed and 27 wounded in the suicide bombing, the first such incident to hit the capital in nearly three years.<\/p>\n
“It was a very powerful explosion,” said Muhammad Imran, a 42-year-old police official who was wounded in the attack.<\/p>\n
“It was a very sudden bang, and I felt like someone had thrown me to the ground,” he told AFP.<\/p>\n
Sharjeel Ahmed, a 26-year-old student, worried about how the violence would affect foreign investment and Pakistan’s ability to host international sports matches.<\/p>\n
“In my opinion, this is a serious security lapse, and we must learn from it. If such attacks continue, how will the world trust us?” he said.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Zardari held security talks in the hours after the attack.<\/p>\n
“Both leaders reiterated their commitment that operations against foreign-backed terrorists and their facilitators will continue until terrorism is completely eradicated,” a statement from the president’s office said.<\/p>\n
– Judges, lawyers afraid –<\/p>\n
Islamabad has long since accused the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan of sheltering the Pakistani Taliban, which the Kabul government denies.<\/p>\n
The Taliban government expressed its “deep sorrow & condemnation” over the suicide bombing and a separate attack on a military-run college in Wana, near the Afghan frontier.<\/p>\n
A Pakistani security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, said all recruits at the Cadet College Wana were rescued after a raid that killed five militants.<\/p>\n
The insurgency waged by the Pakistani Taliban, known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has focused mainly on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
Pakistan has seen an uptick in violence since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in 2021, and bilateral relations have plummeted in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
The worst cross-border fighting in years killed more than 70 people last month, including dozens of Afghan civilians, according to the United Nations.<\/p>\n
In Pakistan, the TTP threatened more attacks until Islamic law is implemented in the Muslim-majority country.<\/p>\n
Hafiz Mazhar Malik Javeed, a lawyer burying a colleague killed in the suicide bombing, feared for the future.<\/p>\n
“All the judges and lawyers were afraid,” the 45-year-old said at the cemetery.<\/p>\n
“We thought, maybe after some times, they will attack us again.”<\/p>\n
aq-zz\/abs\/rsc\/pbt<\/p>\n
\u00a9 Agence France-Presse<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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