Gunmen storm Pakistan airport, killing at least 28
Karachi : Heavily armed gunmen have attacked Karachi international airport in Pakistan, killing at least 28 people.
An army spokesman said all 10 of the gunmen who attacked Jinnah International Airport’s old terminal had also been killed.
Army commandos were called in, and gunfire lasted for more than five hours before the airport was secured. But all operations at the terminal remain suspended and all flights are being diverted to other airports, reports BBC.
According to AP news, gunmen disguised as police guards attacked a terminal at Pakistan’s busiest airport with machine guns and a rocket launcher during a five-hour siege that killed 13 people as explosions echoed into the night.
A separate suicide bombing in the country’s southwest killed 23 Shiite pilgrims returning from Iran.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack on the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, named after the founder of Pakistan, nor the suicide bombing in Baluchistan province. However, the attacks come as government-led peace talks with the local Taliban faction and other militants have floundered in recent weeks.
The airport attack began late Sunday and continued on into the dawn hours of Monday ( June 9 )in Karachi, a sprawling port city on Pakistan’s southern coast, although officials said all the passengers had been evacuated.
Karachi is Pakistan’s largest city and has been the site of frequent militant attacks in the past. It is the country’s economic heart and any militant activity targeting the airport likely would strike a heavy blow at foreign investment in the country. BBC/ AP
June 9, 2014
