http://it.euronews.com/

23/0272017

Lahore, attaccato il quartiere dell’esercito

L’esplosione di un ordigno da 10 chili provoca 8 morti e oltre 20 feriti a Lahore, nel nord est del Pakistan. L’obiettivo dell’attentato è stato il quartiere della Defense Housing Authority, un’organizzazione immobiliare gestita dall’esercito pakistano che ospita alloggi per il personale militare. Per il portavoce della polizia del Punjab, di cui Lahore è la capitale, laa bomba è stata piazzata in un edificio in costruzione, nei pressi di un’area per lo shopping con diversi caffè e negozi. Mercoledì scorso, l’esercito pakistano ha annunciato l’invio in Punjab di un contingente di rangers paramilitari che per due mesi si confronterà con i movimenti islamici clandestini operanti nella provincia. Nelle ultime due settimane, una serie di attentati ha causato la mortedi più di 130 persone.

http://it.blastingnews.com/

23 febbraio 2017

Pakistan: esplosione in un edificio di Lahore, 9 morti

di Maria Ruberto

L'esplosione di un edificio a Lahore avrebbe provocato la morte di nove persone e almeno venti feriti

E' di poche ore fa la notizia che ci arriva dal servizio ANSA. Un edificio sarebbe stato distrutto a causa di un'#esplosione a Lahore, seconda città pakistana con una popolazione di 11 milioni di abitanti. L'esplosione è avvenuta in un edificio situato in una zona commerciale, a dare la notizia è la tv locale DAWNNEWS che informa con certezza che si tratta di un attacco terroristico, ciò viene dedotto dal fatto che l'esplosione è stata causata di un ordigno ad orologeria. Dichiarazioni del portavoce della polizia Nayab Haider - Gli accertamenti sul luogo, svolti dalla polizia provinciale hanno rilevato come l'ordigno contenente tra gli otto e i dieci kg di esplosivo, sia stato posizionato in maniera strategica all'interno di un ristorante dell'area commerciale di Lahore. La costruzione dell'edificio interessato, non è stato del tutto portata a termine, una parte infatti, è ancora in costruzione, mentre quella danneggiata è stata distrutta dall'esplosione di qualche ora fa. Alcune fonti non confermate dichiarano che le esplosioni siano avvenute in più punti del quartiere a distanza di pochi secondi una dall'altra. Fino ad ora abbiamo la conferma che sia avvenuta in un ristorante nella zona commerciale di Lahore, ma si considerano altri punti interessati dalle esplosioni, posizionati rispettivamente: in un mercato altamente affollato della zona centrale, in una banca e davanti alla stazione di Polizia.

Bilancio delle vittime e dei feriti nell'esplosione di Lahore

Non è chiaro e non è definitivo il bilancio delle vittime, estratte dalle macerie, al momento, sarebbero nove morti. Il numero dei feriti si ferma momentaneamente a venti persone. L'attacco non è stato ancora rivendicato da alcun gruppo terroristico, al momento si hanno solo la certezza sulle modalità utilizzate, riconducibili ad altri attacchi di tipo dinamitardo avvenuti in zona nelle ultime due settimane. L'esercito pakistano si prepara ad un'operazione anti terrorismo che agirà su larga scala nazionale, la decisione è stata presa a seguito dell'alto numero di vittime, 130 negli ultimi 15 giorni. #attentato #Pakistan

https://tribune.com.pk/

February 24, 2017

Terror or accident? Mystery explosion wrecks Lahore cafe

By Muhammad Shahzad

Another deadly explosion wrecked a cafe in the capital of Punjab on Thursday, less than a week after a suicide bomber mowed down 16 people — including two senior police officials — outside the Punjab Assembly. The blast tore through a shopping centre in the upscale Defence neighbourhood of Lahore, killing eight people and leaving 39 others injured.

Initially, there was confusion about the nature of the explosion at Z-Block of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), which is replete with upscale boutiques and cafés, but more than eight hours later the police concluded it was an accidental blast caused by gas cylinders.

Eight dead as mystery blast wrecks Lahore cafe

The blast ripped through Alferno Café’, situated in the basement of the building, at 11:17 am. The café was scheduled to be inaugurated a few days later. The owner, Moazzam Paracha, and over 20 workers were present in the café when the explosion occurred.

One worker, Adnan, told the police in his statement that a few days ago the owner had brought five gas cylinders, each weighing 45kgs, four of which were placed in the basement. On Friday night, the workers had complained of foul odour in the basement, suggesting possible leakage, he added. “My brother, Asif, lit a match-stick to smoke a cigarette which could have possibly triggered the explosion.” Asif also died in the explosion.

“It was a deafening explosion,” said police official Haider Awan, who was checking security measures at a bank adjacent to Alferno Café, along with ASI Haroon Javed and a constable. “Initially, I couldn’t understand what had happened,” he recalled. “When I regained senses I saw my colleagues badly injured, bleeding profusely,” he added.

“My God, my God, I saw so many bodies,” said Imtiaz Ali, a barber in a Toni & Guy hair salon opposite the blast site. “When I came out I just saw smoke and dust… Bikes upturned. Cars destroyed. My own colleague’s car windows blown out. My clients’ cars blown out. I was close to fainting.”

Police official Awan said the blast was followed by chaos as people started running around while injured were crying for help. “I saw three bodies lying at 100 meters away from the blast site,” he said, adding that he immediately called rescue services.

Muhamamd Ibrahim, an official of a philanthropist organisation, was the first to respond. “When I reached the site, I saw three bodies – charred and mutilated – in the parking lot,” he told The Express Tribune.

Within an hour, police and paramilitary Rangers threw a security cordon around the area as rescuers ferried the casualties to nearby hospitals and investigators from the Bomb Disposal Squad, Counter-Terrorism Department, Punjab Forensic Science Agency and sensitive agencies scoured through the debris to look for vital forensic evidence.

At least 13 killed, several injured in Lahore blast

The dead were identified as Moazzam Paracha, CEO of Intel Airlink, Asif, 25, Javed, 40, Imran, 40, Shabir, 25, Habib and Richard Munir. Four of the injured were said to be in a critical condition.

It took them more than eight hours to determine the nature of the blast. Around 3.30pm, the CTD chief told the media on the basis of preliminary investigation that the blast was apparently caused by explosives. He wouldn’t say it was a timed device or a remotely triggered bomb.

However, hours later the CTD concluded in its investigation report that it was a cylinder blast. “Eyewitness accounts and crime scene examination confirmed it was an accidental gas explosion,” one official told The Express Tribune.

District Emergency Officer Ahmad Raza said they didn’t find any mark of ball bearings or shrapnel on the bodies of those killed or injured, lending credence to reports that it wasn’t a bomb explosion. The Defence A police, in the jurisdiction of which the building falls, also called it an ‘accident’ based on the statement of Adnan.

However, Home Minister Rana Sanaullah said that they were investigating and reports of the Forensic Science Agency would confirm the nature of blast. “The impact of the blast doesn’t confirm that it was a cylinder blast,” he said, adding that investigators were removing the rubble.

The sound impact of the explosion smashed the windows of almost all the buildings within a radius of 200 metres, while the bang was heard as far as two kilometres. Just over an hour later rumours of a second blast in another affluent area nearby sent ambulances racing to the scene, though authorities later said the reports were false.

Panic also spread on social media as citizens exchanged messages purporting to be warnings from intelligence agencies, including one that falsely stated a general curfew had been ordered in Lahore with shoot-on-sight orders.

Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened a high-level security huddle after the explosion. The meeting reviewed the security situation in the aftermath of the deadly blast, with the chief minister saying that every possible step should be taken to safeguard the life and property of the citizens.

He directed investigators to probe into the blast from all angles and submit a report at the earliest. He also called for speeding up combing operations across the province to eliminate anti-social elements. Attendees included provincial ministers Rana Sanaullah, Lt Col (retd) Sardar Muhammad Ayub, Jehangir Khanzada, and top police and administration officials.

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