Pakistan reels after deadliest Christian raid
Double suicide bombs slaughter 60 at church
PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN: A double suicide bombing killed more than 60 people at a church service in northwest Pakistan yesterday, officials said, believed to be the deadliest attack on Christians in the troubled country.
Pakistan’s small and largely impoverished Christian community suffers discrimination in overwhelmingly Muslim-majority Pakistan but bombings against them are extremely rare.
The two bombers struck at the end of a service at All Saints Church in Peshawar, the main town of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which has borne the brunt of a bloody Islamist insurgency in recent years.
Doctor Mohammad Iqbal of Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital said 120 were wounded in the attacks. Fellow doctor Sher Ali confirmed the numbers.
Sahibzada Anees, one of Peshawar’s most senior officials, told reporters the bombers struck when the service had just ended.
‘‘Most of the wounded are in critical condition,’’ Mr Anees said.
‘‘We are in an area which is a target of terrorism and within that area there is a special security arrangement for the church. We are in a rescue phase and once it is over we will investigate what went wrong.’’
Former minister for inter-faith harmony Paul Bhatti and provincial lawmaker Fredrich Azeem Ghauri both said the attack was the deadliest ever targeting Christians in Pakistan.
School teacher Nazir Khan, 50, said the service had just ended and at least 400 worshippers were greeting each other when there was a big explosion.
‘‘A huge blast threw me on the floor and as soon as I regained my senses, a second blast took place and I saw wounded people everywhere,’’ she said.
Grieving relatives blocked the main Grand Trunk road highway with bodies of the victims to protest against the killings, a witness said.
Sectarian violence between majority Sunni and minority Shia Muslims is on the rise in Pakistan and yesterday’s attack will fuel fears the already beleaguered Christian community could be increasingly targeted.
Islamist militants have carried out hundreds of bombings targeting security forces and minority Muslim groups they regard as heretical, but attacks on Christians have previously largely been confined to grenade attacks and occasional riots.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a deeply conservative province bordering the tribal districts along the Afghan frontier, which are home to Taliban and alQaeda militants.
Provincial lawmaker Mr Ghauri said there were about 200,000 Christians in the province, 70,000 of whom lived in Peshawar.
‘‘Now after this attack Christians across Pakistan will fear for their lives,’’ he warned.
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif strongly condemned the bombings.