Multan News

12 killed as Taliban target ISI in Multan

* Attackers fire rocket, automatic weapons at checkpoint
* Security personnel among those killed
* Body parts of two suspected suicide bombers found

MULTAN: A group of Taliban launched a gun, rocket and suicide attack on the office of an intelligence agency on Tuesday, killing at least 12 people and injuring several others.

The blast in Multan ripped the facades off several buildings in a part of the city largely reserved for government and security agencies. The apparent target of the blast – a building housing an office of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) – was also damaged. Senior police officer Agha Yusuf said at least three Taliban in a car carried out the attack.

He said one of them first fired a rocket and an automatic weapon at a police checkpoint, and then drove to the intelligence agency – where they blew it up. He said security personnel were also among the 12 killed. “It was a suicide attack. There were two attackers who were stopped at the checkpost, but they tried to flee and security personnel fired at them,” another police official, Arif Ikram told reporters. “The attackers returned fire and also launched two rockets, and later exploded their vehicle.”

Multan’s top administrative official, Syed Mohammad Ali Gardezi, said that one military building was badly damaged in the blast. “They did not succeed in hitting the target,” he claimed. Body parts: Gardezi said the body parts of two suspected suicide bombers were strewn over a road outside the ISI office.

“Our security agencies were on alert and they didn’t let the attackers reach their target,” said Gardezi, adding that 47 people had also been injured. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani condemned the attack, and expressed sorrow over the loss of life. Meanwhile, the US embassy also condemned the terrorist attacks in Lahore, Quetta
and Multan. agencies

Pakistan Economic Fears Trump Taliban and Terrorism Concerns

By Lance Winslow

Before the United States military goes charging off into "Talley Band Country" in the middle of Pakistan there are a few things that they need to understand. First, many people like the Taliban better than the Pakistani government. And they are really not worried about terrorism all that would much, oh, about 10% of the people are, but the rest are not worried at all.

Did you know that nearly half of the Pakistani People are worried about inflation; 25% are concerned with unemployment, and only 10% with terrorism, which appears to be equal with fear of poverty. 75% of Pakistanis do not like the idea of US UAVs coming into the Swat Valley or other rural tribal areas to take out terrorists.

With statistics like that, it's going to be very difficult for the United States to impede upon Pakistan territory to root out the Taliban, or Al Qaeda. Further, the Pakistani government knows that they cannot do anything about the United States going in to catch terrorists, but if they stand by and let that happen, the citizens may rise up and try to overtake the government.

If all that happens, and the United States military is involved in the middle of it, we have another huge fiasco on our hands, and we created even more of a problem. It will make the Taliban and Al Qaeda heroes, able to recruit more money, and people to their cause against the West. Please consider this.

Ref. International Republican Institute; information available online or in downloadable .pdf format from their report of March 2009; the data above appeared in Associated Press recently also. It's always good to verify sources anytime you read online.