Pakistan holds funeral prayers for 12 victims of double suicide bombing near military base in Bannu
A militant group linked with the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the bombing in Bannu on Tuesday evening when two suicide bombers breached the wall surrounding the base.
Most of the local residents were breaking their daylong fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan or praying at a nearby mosque.
After the explosions, other attackers stormed the compound and set off a firefight with the troops.
The powerful blasts tore through walls and ripped off roofs and also severely damaged the mosque. Along with the 12 killed, 30 people were also wounded in the attack, some of whom were reported to be in critical condition.
The casualty figures did not include troops. It was not immediately known how many security forces were killed or injured in the assault or the subsequent gunfight.
On Wednesday, a mechanical digger was clearing away rubble where homes used to stand, and debris-covered prayer mats lay crumpled on the mosque floor.
A day of mourning was being observed, said Bannu community elder Alam Khan, and joint funeral prayers were to be held for the victims at a sports complex in the area.
Gunshots could still be heard early on Wednesday as security forces combed through the area, looking to clear it of any militants involved in the attack.
'All education institutions are closed,' Khan said. 'Most shops are also shut. Rescue workers have completed their operation by recovering the bodies of three deceased worshippers who were trapped under the collapsed roof of the mosque.'
Bannu is located in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that borders Afghanistan, and several armed groups are active there. A group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban, Jaish Al-Fursan, has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Family fears for elderly UK couple detained by Taliban
The family of elderly British couple Peter and Barbie Reynolds, detained for six months without charge in Afghanistan, fears the worst as their health declines. 'I don't know if they're still alive,' said their son, Jonathan Reynolds, who has not spoken to his parents since their last phone call on June 15. 'How would I know if they were no longer alive? Who's going to call me? The Taliban's never called me. Who's going to call? I don't know,' asked Reynolds, one of the couple's four children. Peter Reynolds, 80, and his 76-year-old wife were arrested in February along with Chinese-American friend, Faye Hall, who was released in March, and an Afghan translator. The couple were married in Kabul in 1970, and have spent almost two decades living in Afghanistan running educational programs after moving there. They also became official Afghan citizens. Taliban officials have refused to detail why the couple was arrested in February as they were returning to their home in central Bamiyan province. 'They were told by the judge that they were not guilty of any crimes,' said their son. 'So many times we've been told two to three days and then you'll be released ... But it's six months on Saturday,' he added. The couple were first held in a maximum security facility, 'then in underground cells, without daylight, before being transferred' to the intelligence services in Kabul, according to UN experts. In late July, the independent UN human rights experts called for the Taliban to free the pair warning of the 'rapid deterioration' of their physical and mental health, stating that they 'risk irreparable harm or even death.' UN experts shared a voice message from the couple with their son, but he has not been reassured. 'You have to remember their age,' Reynolds, 45, told AFP during a video call from his home in Chicago. 'Are they in danger? Yeah, they're an elderly couple who are unjustly held ... in captivity. They are not free,' he said. 'Their bodies are not used to being put through this, they're being trapped, they're sleeping on a little mattress on the floor,' he said. 'Weak, fragile' The couple's children have set up a website called Free Peter and Barbie to campaign for their release, which counts down the number of days they have been held. Since being detained, Peter Reynolds has suffered two eye infections and intermittent tremors in his head and left arm, according to the UN experts. 'My dad has had heart attacks ... he has a stent in his heart. He has had skin cancer,' Jonathan Reynolds said. 'So he needs an ECG (electrocardiogram), blood test, EEG (electroencephalogram), CT scans. He needs all of that,' he added. His mother suffers from malnourishment and anemia after months of being 'fed once a day in prison,' her son added. She is 'weak and fragile,' the experts said. The Taliban government's top diplomat Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said the couple had been receiving medical care. 'Their human rights are being respected,' he told a press conference in Kabul. 'They are being provided with medical care. They are in occasional contact with their families.' 'Their case isn't anything serious,' the Taliban interior ministry said in April, adding they hoped it would be 'resolved soon.' The couple run an organization in Afghanistan called Rebuild, which provides educational programs for women and children. 'My parents have never thought about their security and safety,' Reynolds said, it was 'no way to treat an elderly couple who've given the last two decades of their life for the good of Afghanistan.' When the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the couple remained in Afghanistan against the advice of the British embassy. Their son recalled the embassy asking them: ''Why are you staying? You're on your own'' His parents had replied: ''How could we leave these people in their darkest hour? We came here because we love these people, and that's what we'll give the rest of our lives to, even if it means we die.''
Arab News
2 days ago
- Arab News
Family fears for elderly UK couple held by Taliban
LONDON: The family of elderly British couple Peter and Barbie Reynolds, detained for six months without charge in Afghanistan, fears the worst as their health declines. 'I don't know if they're still alive,' said their son, Jonathan Reynolds, who has not spoken to his parents since their last phone call on June 15. 'How would I know if they were no longer alive? Who's going to call me? The Taliban's never called me. Who's going to call? I don't know,' asked Reynolds, one of the couple's four children. Peter Reynolds, 80, and his 76-year-old wife were arrested in February along with Chinese-American friend, Faye Hall, who was released in March, and an Afghan translator. The couple were married in Kabul in 1970, and have spent almost two decades living in Afghanistan running educational programs after moving there. They also became official Afghan citizens. Taliban officials have refused to detail why the couple was arrested in February as they were returning to their home in central Bamiyan province. 'They were told by the judge that they were not guilty of any crimes,' said their son. 'So many times we've been told two to three days and then you'll be released ... But it's six months on Saturday,' he added. The couple were first held in a maximum security facility, 'then in underground cells, without daylight, before being transferred' to the intelligence services in Kabul, according to UN experts. In late July, the independent UN human rights experts called for the Taliban to free the pair warning of the 'rapid deterioration' of their physical and mental health, stating that they 'risk irreparable harm or even death.' UN experts shared a voice message from the couple with their son, but he has not been reassured. 'You have to remember their age,' Reynolds, 45, told AFP during a video call from his home in Chicago. 'Are they in danger? Yeah, they're an elderly couple who are unjustly held ... in captivity. They are not free,' he said. 'Their bodies are not used to being put through this, they're being trapped, they're sleeping on a little mattress on the floor,' he said. The couple's children have set up a website called Free Peter and Barbie to campaign for their release, which counts down the number of days they have been held. Since being detained, Peter Reynolds has suffered two eye infections and intermittent tremors in his head and left arm, according to the UN experts. 'My dad has had heart attacks ... he has a stent in his heart. He has had skin cancer,' Jonathan Reynolds said. 'So he needs an ECG (electrocardiogram), blood test, EEG (electroencephalogram), CT scans. He needs all of that,' he added. His mother suffers from malnourishment and anaemia after months of being 'fed once a day in prison,' her son added. She is 'weak and fragile,' the experts said. The Taliban government's top diplomat Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said the couple had been receiving medical care. 'Their human rights are being respected,' he told a press conference in Kabul. 'They are being provided with medical care. They are in occasional contact with their families.' 'Their case isn't anything serious,' the Taliban interior ministry said in April, adding they hoped it would be 'resolved soon.' The couple run an organization in Afghanistan called Rebuild, which provides educational programs for women and children. 'My parents have never thought about their security and safety,' Reynolds said, it was 'no way to treat an elderly couple who've given the last two decades of their life for the good of Afghanistan.' When the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the couple remained in Afghanistan against the advice of the British embassy. Their son recalled the embassy asking them: ''Why are you staying? You're on your own'.' His parents had replied: ''How could we leave these people in their darkest hour? We came here because we love these people, and that's what we'll give the rest of our lives to, even if it means we die'.'
Saudi Gazette
3 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
India court acquits seven accused in 2008 Malegaon blast case
DELHI — A court in India has acquitted all seven accused in a deadly bombing that struck a Muslim-majority town in Maharashtra state nearly 17 years ago. At least six people were killed and nearly a hundred injured in the blasts that hit Malegaon in September 2008. Among the seven acquitted are Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, a former MP of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and a serviceman, Lt Col Shrikant Prasad Purohit. According to legal portal Live Law, the judge noted that the prosecution failed to prove the motorbike that allegedly triggered the blasts belonged to Thakur. The court also observed that while the prosecution had proven a bomb blast did occur, it failed to establish that the explosive was planted on the motorbike. Regarding Purohit - who was accused of raising funds to purchase explosives for a right-wing outfit and organising meetings to plan the attack - the court said there was "no evidence of storing or assembling the explosives at Shrikant Prasad Purohit's residence," according to the verdict cited by news agency special court in Mumbai cleared the accused of all charges, including under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act - an anti-terror law."Terrorism has no religion because no religion can advocate violence. The court cannot convict anyone merely on perception and moral evidence; there has to be cogent evidence," ANI reported, quoting the of the victims' families said they will challenge the acquittal in the High Court and file an appeal case was initially handled by Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) before being transferred to India's premier counter-terror agency, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in politically important case was one of the first major instances where right-wing Hindu nationalist groups were directly accused of militant the years, the case saw several twists and turns. More than 300 witnesses were examined during the trial, with at least 34 later turning 2016, NIA filed a chargesheet and said they could not find sufficient evidence against Thakur and three others. It recommended dropping charges against the court acquitted the three, it ordered that Thakur must still stand 2018, an NIA special court formally framed charges against the remaining seven accused under the anti-terror law, charges of criminal conspiracy, murder and promoting enmity between religious verdict, initially expected in May, was postponed after the judge ordered all accused to be present in court. — BBC
