Police Seek Clues About Pakistani Bombing

The Pakistani police are seeking for clues on who was responsible for the suicide bombing at a most near Peshawar that resulted in the death of at least 50 people. Officials say that the bomber was among the congregation.

Currently, the forensic scientists have combed through the scene and the remains of the explosive device and the victims. They were part of the larger crowd as they offered prayers for Eid al-Adha. This takes place during the Eid celebration. Seven arrests were made at an Islamic school at a nearby village, according to the reports. Aftab Sherpao, who is the former Interior Minister of Pakistan was part of the congregation. He was unharmed. His son was amongst one of the 100 people that was hurt during the attack. They say that Mr. Sherpao was the target. If that is the case, then it would be the second suicide bombing attack against his life in eight months. He is one of President Musharraf’s closest allies. According to the police, the bomb was between 13-17 pounds. It was packed with nails and ball bearings to maximize the number of casualties once the bomb goes off. “There was blood and body parts everywhere… People were running. Some people were injured in the chaos,” according to Iqbal Hussain, the officer in charge of security at the mosque. He explains that he didn’t know how the bomber managed to get inside the mosque. The congregation had to go through metal and explosive detectors. BBC explains that the most likely suspects are pro-Taliban militants. US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that this was a sign that Al-Qaeda has returned to Pakistan.