Islamabad suicide bomber was Afghan national: Pak

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday said that the suicide bomber involved in the deadly Islamabad bombing was an Afghan national. At least 12 people were killed on Tuesday when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives near the entrance of a court in the G-11 area of the capital. After visiting the attack site, Naqvi had announced to identify the bomber before pointing fingers in any direction. Addressing the Senate on Thursday, Naqvi said that authorities have identified the attackers as well as those involved in the Islamabad bombing. “We have traced the attacker. The suicide bomber is an Afghan national,” he said. The minister also said that the suicide bombers involved in the Wana Cadet College attack in South Waziristan district this week were also from Afghanistan. He also announced that action would be taken at an appropriate level. Six people were injured on Monday after a suicide bomber detonated explosives at the main gate of the Wana Cadet College in South Waziristan, bordering Afghanistan. Replying to a question outside the parliament, Naqvi rejected the idea of talks with militants. “How can we talk to them when they are throwing bombs on us? It is not possible,” he said. Separately, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that terrorism increased after the Taliban came to power. “There is total goodwill from Pakistan, but every week we have to shoulder the dead bodies of our soldiers and people,” Dar told the Senate. He also targeted the previous government of Imran Khan for allegedly allowing the Taliban to come back from Afghanistan, where they had fled after operations in the border regions. He also claimed the jailed Taliban militants were released during Khan’s tenure. More than 100 hardened criminals were set free by the previous regime,” he said. Meanwhile, security agencies have arrested two key suspects, a handler and a facilitator, in connection with the suicide bombing in Islamabad, reported Geo News. The facilitator, living in Rawalpindi for the past month, was arrested in Rawalpindi while the handler was detained from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, it said, quoting sources. Before the attack, the facilitator and the suicide bomber visited the Judicial Complex several times to survey the area, the sources said. The suspects have been shifted to an undisclosed location for interrogation. A rider — employed with an online service — dropped the attacker near the court for a fare of PKRs 200, police sources told Geo News. They also said that efforts are continuing to track the bomber’s movements.