Nine killed in Pakistan bomb attacks
Bomb attacks in north-western Pakistan killed nine people today, including three worshippers at a mosque and a group of soldiers travelling through an area the army pounded in a months-long offensive earlier this year.
The attacks showed the fragility of the military’s gains in its offensives against al-Qaida and Taliban insurgents along the border with Afghanistan.
The US is hoping to bolster Pakistan’s fight against extremists with a surge in military funding expected to be announced later today.
In the first attack, a roadside bomb tore through a vehicle carrying paramilitary soldiers in the Orakzai tribal region, where the army recently declared victory over the Taliban.
The blast killed six soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel, and wounded three others, security officials said.
Hours later, a bomb hit a mosque on the outskirts of Peshawar, the capital of the north-western province. Besides the three killed, 22 people were injured, said senior police officer Liaquat Ali.
It was unclear whether the mosque was Sunni or Shiite affiliated. Pakistan is majority Sunni, and there have long been tensions between the two Muslim sects. The blast occurred during Friday prayers, which are typically the most attended prayer sessions of the week.
The US has praised Pakistan’s operations against militant groups, largely because many of the insurgent movements are believed to also be involved in attacking American and Nato troops across the border in Afghanistan.
The Obama administration is setting out a new multi-year, multi-billion-dollar military aid package for Pakistan, which was set to be unveiled at the end of the latest round of high-level US-Pakistani strategic talks in Washington, US officials said.
The money will be provided over the next five years under the State Department’s Foreign Military Financing programme that funds other countries’ purchases of US-made arms, ammunition and accessories, the officials said.
The US administration hopes the announcement will reassure Pakistan of the long-term US commitment to its military needs and help it bolster its efforts to go after Taliban and al-Qaida affiliates on its territory.
The fight has had setbacks.
The offensive in Orakzai, for instance, has had mixed results. It came on the heels of an operation against the Pakistani Taliban in the South Waziristan tribal area. Many of the South Waziristan insurgents were believed to have fled north to Orakzai.
For months, the military pounded Orakzai with airstrikes, eventually staging a ground operation as well. The offensive intensified in March, with the reported daily death tolls of suspected militants sometimes in the dozens.
In June, the Pakistani army declared victory over the Taliban in Orakzai, saying the tens of thousands of civilians forced to flee could expect to return home soon. But that declaration appeared premature – fighting was reported in the days afterward, and civilian returns have been limited.
