ISLAMABAD, 29 May 2005 — A photograph of the suspected bomber, who killed at least 25 people in an attack at a shrine in the Pakistani capital, was released here yesterday.
Nearly 100 people wounded in Friday’s bomb blast were being treated in different hospitals, and the death toll was likely to rise with some of the wounded described in critical condition.
The blast occurred inside the compound of the Bari Imam shrine, where thousands of Muslims had gathered to pray.
It was just the latest incident of religious violence to rock the Pakistan since it joined the US-led war on terrorism after the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001, but the worst ever attack in the capital, which has largely been spared militant attacks.
Police had recovered the head of the suspected bomber with his face still intact, as rest of his body was completely blown up.
Authorities have circulated a picture of the suspected bomber, showing a bloodstained, clean-shaven face and announced an 800,000 rupee ($8,300) reward for information.
“Luckily his face is not damaged. It is very clear and can be easily identified,” a police investigator said. “We hope to establish identity within a few days.”
“(Investigators) are trying to identify him. We will soon determine who he is,” Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said.
Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said it was too early to be sure about motive, but the involvement of sectarian militants could not be ruled out.
“Since this was a separate Shiite gathering, there is a possibility of that, but we are not ruling out other options as well,” he told reporters after visiting the scene of the blast.
Investigators say the bomber made his way into the gathering when a group of Shiites was arriving to listen to a sermon.
“He sat near the podium for some time and then blew himself up,” the police investigator said. President Pervez Musharraf condemned the deadliest attack in the capital for years, and appealed for his countrymen to unite against “religious terrorism, sectarianism and extremism.”
Musharraf ordered a high-ranking police team to investigate the incident, which came less than 10 days after Islamic jurists and clerics issued a decree against suicide bombing in Pakistan as “un-Islamic”.
Security has been beefed up in and around all religious sites across the country after Friday’s explosion, which occurred about 1,000 meters from the official residence of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and near a diplomatic enclave.
“We have ordered enhanced security across the country particularly at places of worship as well as public and government buildings to ward off possible revenge attacks,” an Interior Ministry official said.
Police stepped up security in Islamabad yesterday. The Interior Ministry has directed all provincial governments and the Islamabad district administration to make foolproof security arrangements around important places including railway stations, bus stands and airport, sources said. District coordination officers and district police officers have been directed to provide security to local religious leaders belonging to various sects and hold meetings with them to create religious harmony. Additional contingents of police and rangers were called to assist the security agencies and they were deployed at almost all the religious places.
Tariq Jamil, the Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Karachi, said the “Public reaction was quite natural, but we adopted immediate precautionary measures by deploying additional force at all mosques and other religious sites.”
