7 killed in attack on U.S. consulate in Peshawar
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Security forces guard near the site of the bomb blast in Peshawar, the capital of North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Pakistan, April 5, 2010. A group of six suicide bombers attacked the heavily-guarded American consulate in Peshawar, damaged parts of the building and killed at least seven people including three foreigners, a provincial minister and the army spokesman said. [Umar Qayyum/Xinhua] |
Doctors said that the 11 injured were shifted to the city's Lady Reading Hospital while several injured were taken to the army's hospital. The journalists were not allowed to go into the army's hospital.
The American consulate, situated in the cantonment area, is heavily guarded by the Frontier Constabulary.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has strongly condemned the Peshawar blasts and ordered for providing special medical facilities to the injured, his office said.
TV footage showed a big blast near a roadside shop, sending thick smoke in the air. Witnesses said they saw a car exploded with a huge blast.
Officials said that the attackers first fired at an armored vehicle car of the security forces at the gate of the consulate. Police and other guards opened fire on the bomber.
An army helicopter was seen flying in the area to check if any attack was hiding in the area. The security forces made announcements, asking the people to stay way from the blast sites in fear of more blasts.
The blasts smashed windows of houses and offices in the area, witnesses said.
The NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain blamed the militants for the attacks and said that they have faced a defeat in the Swat valley and Waziristan tribal region and now began killing innocent people in cities.
