30 Killed In Bomb Attack On Shiite Pilgrims In Pakistan

Islamabad, Dec 31, IRNA -- At least 30 people have been killed and several others wounded in a bomb attack on two buses carrying Shiite pilgrims in Pakistan's Balochistan province, officials said. The attack occurred in Mastung district on Sunday when the buses were coming from the border town of Taftan, a provincial official, Tufail Baloch said. He said that one bus was destroyed, while the other one was partly damaged. The injured were being transferred to Quetta, the provincial capital at the time of this news report. Levies personnel cordoned off the area. No group has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attacks as yet. Witnesses said that a car slammed into the bus in the middle, which was carrying 45 passengers, blowing it up and destroying it. Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the the terrorist attacks and offered condolences to the relatives of those who died in the attack. There had been attacks on pilgrims in Balochistan in the past. Banned extremist group 'Lashkar-e-Jhangvi' routinely claims responsibility for the attacks./end