DATE=9/19/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=PAK / BLAST (L-UPDATE)
NUMBER=2-266772
BYLINE=SCOTT ANGER
DATELINE=ISLAMABAD
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Authorities in Pakistan say they have arrested
three men in connection with a bomb blast, which
killed 16 people at a produce market in the capital,
Islamabad Tuesday morning. As correspondent Scott
Anger reports, the blast is the deadliest attack to
take place in the violence-prone country this year.
TEXT: Acting on information supplied by Islamabad
police, officials in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier
Province say they have taken three men into custody in
connection with the deadly explosion.
The hidden bomb exploded while workers were unloading
crates of fruit from a truck in a market crowded with
morning shoppers in one of the capital's poorer
sections. The blast shattered windows and damaged
nearby shops. Twisted metal and piles of bloody shoes
and shredded clothes littered the site of the blast.
Dozens of people were seriously injured.
Police official, Hamid Ali Khan, arrived shortly after
the explosion. He says more than a hundred people had
gathered around to buy fruit, which was being unloaded
from the back of a truck when the bomb exploded.
///KHAN ACT///
One of the fruit crates, when it was placed on
the ground, it exploded. There was a lot of
panic and about 40 to 50 bodies were lying
around, everybody was rushing right and left.
///END ACT///
Authorities in the provincial capital, Peshawar, say
the three arrested men were responsible for loading
the truck before it made the journey to the market.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack,
which is the bloodiest of about 40 bombings that have
rocked Pakistani cities this year. Many attacks
target markets, bus stations and other crowded public
places.
Factional fighting and political violence has plagued
the country for years. However, during times of
unrest in Pakistan, the federal capital, Islamabad,
has traditionally remained calm. (SIGNED)
NEB/SA/KBK
19-Sep-2000 09:42 AM EDT (19-Sep-2000 1342 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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