10 Killed in NW Pakistan

Posted September 1st, 2011 at 4:00 pm (UTC-5)
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Pakistani authorities say 10 people were killed Thursday in two separate attacks in the country's volatile northwest.

Local police said that in the first attack in the Lakki Marwat district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, a suicide car bomber blew himself up as he approached a police station. The blast killed the bomber and two civilians and wounded at least 12 others, including several policemen.

The explosion also damaged several nearby shops and houses.

In the second incident in Kurram tribal agency Thursday, gunmen opened fire on a minibus killing seven Shi'ite Muslims. The victims include several members of the same family.

While no one has claimed responsibility for the ambush, local officials say they suspect it was a sectarian attack targeting Pakistan's Shi'ite minority.

The attacks coincide with Eid al-Fitr, the three-day Muslim festival celebrating the end of the holy month of Ramadan.