Islamabad: The death toll in the devastating attacks on a women’s university bus and a hospital in the Pakistani city of Quetta rose to 25 on Sunday even as reports emerged of the involvement of a woman suicide bomber in one of the incidents.
The banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attacks, saying they were carried out in retaliation for a raid against the group by security forces.
Fourteen students of the Sardar Bahadur Khan Women’s University and four nurses of the Bolan Medical Complex were among the dead.
The attack on the women’s university bus was carried out by a woman suicide bomber, Express News channel quoted security sources as saying. About 40 students and teachers were in the bus, waiting to go home after classes.
Twenty-two women were injured by the powerful blast. Reports said the bus was assigned for students from a nearby neighbourhood dominated by the Shia Hazara community, which has been the target of several attacks by the LeJ.
When the victims of the attack were taken to the nearby Bolan Medical Complex, the hospital was stormed by a group of heavily armed militants. One militant blew himself up near an operation theatre while the others fired indiscriminately and took people hostage.
The militants targeted the hospital as several senior police and civil officials, including the police chief and Chief Secretary of Balochistan, were leaving the building after enquiring about the victims of the first attack. Deputy Commissioner Abdul Mansoor Kakar, Shabbir Magsi, the medico-legal officer of the hospital, four nurses and as many Frontier Corps personnel were killed in the second attack.
Four militants were either killed or blew themselves up while one was captured by security forces, who also freed 35 hostages.
Chief Secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh Muhammad confirmed 25 people had died and about 50 were injured in both attacks.
A captain of the Frontier Corps, a senior police officer, Assistant Commissioner Anwar Ali and several staff and patients of the hospital were among the injured.
“We will be able to give thorough details of the number of dead and injured after we complete a search of the hospital,” the Chief Secretary said.
It is still not clear how many militants were involved in the attack on the hospital.
Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan told reporters Saturday that preliminary information suggested 12 to 14 militants had stormed the complex.
It was also not clear if any militants had escaped while troops carried out a six-hour operation to clear the hospital. Abu Bakar Siddique, a spokesman of the LeJ, telephoned the Quetta Press Club and claimed responsibility for the attacks.
He said they were carried out in response to a raid against the LeJ in Kharotabad area last week. A woman and children were killed during that raid when some LeJ militants blew themselves up.
The Balochistan government announced a day of mourning on Sunday and the national flag flew at half- mast over official buildings. Civil society groups and traders’ associations too called for a day of mourning and most of Quetta was shut down to protest the attacks, which were the first major terrorist incidents since new governments assumed office. (PTI)