Pakistan Suicide Bomb Attack on Bhutto - Investigation Update

By Jeffrey Imm

This is a further news roundup update from initial October 18-19 news roundup on the attack on Benazir Bhutto; the previous news roundup included continuing news updates through October 19.

Authorities are being reported that they have concluded that at least one suicide bomber was involved in the Bhutto procession bombing on October 18. The Independent reports that a "senior Pakistani police investigator has claimed the suicide-bomber responsible for the Karachi attack was seen running through the crowd surrounding Benazir Bhutto's convoy before hurling himself towards her armored truck." The India Times has a video from Bhutto's bodyguard claiming that he saw the bomber. In addition, India Times reports that 50 of Bhutto's bodyguards were killed in the attack.

The October 21 Daily Telegraph and PTI news service both report that the suspected suicide bomber tried to get close to Bhutto by trying to sell her cotton buds that she had requested, but was turned away twice. Daily Telegraph reports that the suicide bomber broke through the outer ring of security on the third attempt, and that is when he detonated the grenade and then the suicide bomb.

On October 20, Reuters has reported that a photo has been released of the suspected suicide bomber. Per Reuters, Urdu language newspapers carried passport-sized photographs of the head of the suicide bomber propped on a white sheet, and a security official told Reuters that "[t]he age of suspect is in between 20 to 25 and he looks to be a Karachiite". AP also reports that the image is being shown on Pakistani television. Bloomberg News reports that Pakistani law enforcement have secured evidence from the scene of the bomb attack (which was expressed by multiple media sources as being poorly managed the night of the attack). October 21 Daily Telegraph reports that the suicide bomber was likely picked due to his physical resemblance to Bhutto's security staff; the Telegraph reports that sources say that the bomber looked like a markani who are known to be strong PPP supporters.

On October 21, Dawn and PTI News report that a second head of a suspected suicide bomber was found and was being examined. Dawn also reports that the suicide bomber is reported to have four or five accomplices, and Dawn reports that a security official told them "that the suicide bomber had been part of a suspicious-looking group of men, amongst whom some had been holding sticks". The October 20 Pakistan Daily News reports that four heads from the bomb attack are being examined at the University of Karachi for clues and evidence.

The Times of India reports that "a leading daily claimed that four bombers had arrived in Karachi from Waziristan recently to target Bhutto when she flew into the city on October 18th and that authorities were warned about them. Times of India also reports that "leading daily" states"there was another suicide bomber at the scene of Friday’s attack but 'slipped away'. "

AP reports that Pakistan is questioning three people believed to be linked to a vehicle that police believe was used by one of the attackers who threw a grenade at the convoy, and who police believe hold crucial clues on the bombing. Times of India also reports that Benazir Bhutto claims that one of the people she alleges to have been a threat to her is being "watched" by the police.

Dawn and Pakistan Daily News provide more details of the investigation. Dawn reports that police are closely examining what they believe to be the head of the suicide bomber, and that police are attempting to get fingerprints from the forearm of the suspected suicide bomber's body. In addition, Dawn reports that a Russian hand grenade was used for one of the explosions, and the suicide bomber used 12 kg of RDX explosives. The October 21 Daily Telegraph reports that it is believed that suicide bomber used C4 explosives.

The October 20 London Times reports that Benazir Bhutto said that she had sent President Musharraf the names of three people whom she suspected of planning the attempt to kill her. According to Newsweek, "[p]rincipal among those she identified...was Ejaz Shah, the head of Pakistan's shadowy Intelligence Bureau". London Times reports that Bhutto "blamed officials inside President Musharraf's Government as well as militants for trying to kill her". Bhutto was reported by AP on October 19 that she believed threats came from: "There was one suicide squad from the Taliban elements, one suicide squad from al-Qaida, one suicide squad from Pakistani Taliban and a fourth --a group -- I believe from Karachi". Bhutto said that telephone numbers of the suicide bombers were provided by a "brotherly" country. CNN reports that Bhutto states that the attack will not stop her political campaign.

A separate AP report on October 20 states that a top Pakistani government official dismissed accusations that officials may have been complicit in the attack. Deputy Information Minister Sen. Tariq Azim told AP: "I think we should stop playing blame games. The government provided the best possible security to her. The trauma of the attack has made them say things which probably in coolness of things they will not repeat." Reuters reports on October 21 that Benazir Bhutto has asked the Pakistan government to seek international help in conducting the suicide bombing investigation.

On October 21, the Daily Telegraph reports that, should she be re-elected into the Pakistan government, Benazir Bhutto plans "to purge her country's intelligence services of hundreds of rogue agents suspected of supporting Islamic terrorism", and that foremost in her sights will be the Pakistan Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) viewed to be a "state within the state". As previously mentioned, Newsweek reports that Bhutto has suspected "Ejaz Shah, the head of Pakistan's shadowy Intelligence Bureau" of planning to kill her.

In the October 20 London Times, Bhutto states: "The cowardly people who planned the attacks on me are not Muslims. No Muslim can attack a woman, no Muslim can attack innocent people." AP reports on October 20 that Mahmoud Al Hasan, a leader of Hezb-ul-Mujahedeen, a militant group aligned to Pakistan's Islamic religious Jamaat-e-Islami party, says: "Benazir Bhutto was totally talking like an infidel. What should be the reaction of jihadis? They should definitely kill her. She is an enemy of Islam. She is an enemy of jihadis. She is an enemy of the country." As reported in the last news roundup, Taliban spokesman Haji Umer told BBC Pashto that "[t]he Taliban will definitely target Benazir Bhutto if she supports the United States and the so-called war on terror. "

The October 20 AP report addresses how "[m]ilitants in Pakistan share fundamentalist Islamic principles, hatred of US-allied government". AP states that a "businessman in the northwestern city of Peshawar who finances militant groups said the attack against Bhutto was well-coordinated and planned. The man, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of being arrested by authorities, said there are hundreds of would-be bombers in Pakistan who are ready to blow themselves up in such attacks."

The October 20 AP report also provides background on other Jihadist groups in Pakistan and the continuing violence in that country, as well as the kidnappings and murders by Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud, who has claimed to have 3,000 suicide bombers ready. Taliban's Baitullah Mehsud has claimed that he was not responsible for the Bhutto suicide bomb attack. The October 5 Pakistan Daily Times reported that Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud had made threats against Bhutto's life and promised to send suicide bombers after her if she returned to Pakistan. Baitullah Mehsud has bragged about killing kidnapped Pakistani soldiers, whose bodies were found dismembered. October 20 DPA reports that this same Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud states: "We cannot even think of killing innocent people".

A separate October 19 AP report addresses the issue within Pakistan of "Muslims killing Muslims." AFP reports that on Pakistani press urged a stepped up fight on extremism.

The October 20 Pakistan Daily Times reports that another 10 suicide bombers are reported to be ready to attack Islamabad, Pindi, and other cities throughout Pakistan. On October 20, a car bomb killed 7 in Baluchistan, while a girls school was bombed, individuals were injured by a bicycle bomb, and a car bomb went off in Peshawar.

In addition, on October 20, DPA reports of unrest in southern Pakistan among Pakistanis as a result of the suicide bomber attack on Bhutto's procession. DPA reports that "[h]undreds of angry demonstrators held rallies and blocked roads by setting ablaze tires in several cities across southern Pakistan".

On October 21, several analyses appeared in major media sources.

AFP provided an analysis: "Pakistan at tipping point after Bhutto attack". AFP states that analysts believe that the "bloodbath at Benazir Bhutto’s homecoming has pushed nuclear-armed Pakistan to crisis point, both politically and in its US-backed battle against Al Qaeda and the Taleban. Analysts said Pakistan itself now faces the choice Bhutto did when she returned home -- face a mortal risk at the hands of militants, or give in to extremists."

International Herald Tribune provides an analysis: "Amid Pakistan carnage, a 'nightmare scenario' for U.S. policy". IHT commentators state: "The recent scenes of carnage in Pakistan conjured what one senior administration official called 'the nightmare scenario' for President George W. Bush's last 15 months in office: political meltdown in the one country where Al Qaeda, the Taliban and nuclear weapons are all in play."

Newsweek provided an analysis: "Pakistan: Where the Jihad Lives Now -- Islamic militants have spread beyond their tribal bases, and have the run of an unstable, nuclear-armed nation." Newsweek's analysis states: "The safe haven provided by Pakistan has already had dire effects on U.S. and NATO efforts to fight the resurgent Taliban next door in Afghanistan. Taliban fighters now pretty much come and go as they please inside Pakistan. Their sick and injured get patched up in private hospitals there. Guns and supplies are readily available, and in the winter, when fighting traditionally dies down in Afghanistan, thousands retire to the country's thriving madrassas to study the Qur'an. Some of the brainier operatives attend courses in computer technology, video production and even English. Far from keeping a low profile, the visiting fighters attend services at local mosques, where after prayers they speak to the congregation, soliciting donations to support the war against the West. 'Pakistan is like your shoulder that supports your RPG,' Taliban commander Mullah Momin Ahmed told NEWSWEEK, barely a month before a U.S. airstrike killed him last September in Afghanistan's eastern Ghazni province. 'Without it you couldn't fight. Thank God Pakistan is not against us.'"

Sources:

October 20, 2007 - Independent: Suicide-bomber seen running through crowd

October 20, 2007 - Reuters: Bhutto Suicide Bomb Attack: Photo of Pakistani bomber released

October 20, 2007 - Pakistan Daily Times: Bhutto Suicide Bomb Attack: Four heads sent to University of Karachi for DNA tests

October 20, 2007 - Dawn: Bhutto Suicide Bomb Attack: Suicide bomber used 14-kg RDX explosives

October 20, 2007 - Bloomberg News: Pakistani Police Secure Evidence at Site of Bhutto Bomb Attack

October 19, 2007 - AP: Bhutto blames terror-thirsty groups for suicide bombing that blighted her homecoming

October 20, 2007 - London Times: Benazir Bhutto blames enemies within the Government for suicide bombing

October 20, 2007 - AP: Militants in Pakistan share fundamentalist Islamic principles, hatred of US-allied government

October 20, 2007 - DPA: Pakistani militants deny hand in suicide attack on Bhutto

October 20, 2007 - London Times: Benazir Bhutto blames enemies within the Government for suicide bombing

October 20, 2007 - AP: Pakistan government insists it did all it could to protect Bhutto on her return

October 20, 2007 - CNN: Bhutto: Attack won't stop campaign