At least 19 perish in Pakistan bombing

 The recent bombings end a relative lull in militant violence over the past month and turn up the heat on a government overwhelmed by devastating floods that have made millions homeless and hammered the economy.

Nearly 100 people were killed last week in suicide bombings on processions of minority Shiite Muslims in the eastern city of Lahore and southwestern city of Quetta. “It goes to show that the terrorists have no creed except bloodshed and chaos, and are desperately carrying out their agenda regardless of the precarious conditions,” Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani told a meeting of provincial officials. Pakistan’s Taliban have been fighting to topple the US-backed government for years. Their ambitions have grown.

Last week, the Pakistani Taliban threatened to launch attacks in the US and Europe “very soon,” after US prosecutors charged their leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, over a plot that killed seven CIA employees at a US base in Afghanistan last December.

The army has launched a series of offensives over the last year it says weakened the Taliban, although analysts question their effectiveness because militants tend to melt away during crackdowns and establish strongholds elsewhere. “There need to be consistent and far more targeted military operations. And in particular, there needs to be a focus on the militants’ command and control,” said Samina Ahmed, South Asia project director for the International Crisis Group.

The army has raised its profile by leading flood relief efforts, reinforcing the view that civilian governments can’t handle major crises. “Whatever these poor soldiers can do, they are doing for us. They give us food three times a day, also clothes and other things,” said flood victim Naseema Bibi at a camp.

The military, however, is stretched because of its flood operations and militants may exploit the void, analysts say. The latest attack took place in the town of Lakki Marwat. The bomber struck a school van before hitting the rear wall of the police station. The blast turned most of the police station into rubble. Burnt-out cars were flipped on their sides. “Nineteen people have been killed. There are nine policemen and two children among the dead,” the Information Minister of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, told Reuters.

Hussain said 34 people, including 20 policemen, were wounded. Militants have frequently carried out attacks in Lakki Marwat, near Pakistan’s lawless tribal areas, known as major sanctuaries for militants loyal to al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

[Letter to the Editor] Thank you Turkey

We, the nation of Pakistan, thank with all our heart the government and people of Turkey for their support and for coming to our aid during this disastrous flood crisis. We cannot forget what the Turkish prime minister’s wife, Emine Erdoğan, said on her recent visit to Pakistan. We appreciate her statement that in helping Pakistan Turkey is not doing us a favor, but rather carrying out the responsibility of the government of Turkey to help their Pakistani brothers and sisters in their hour of need. We Pakistanis shall never forget this act of kindness from the Turkish government. Due to this act of great friendship on the part of our dear Turkish brothers and sisters, we proudly declare Turkey our second home.

In August of 2008 I paid a visit to İstanbul, Turkey. Our host there was Dr. İsmail Özsoy. He is associated with the department of economics at Faith University in İstanbul. I received a call from him on the evening of Sept. 5, 2010. He was very upset and grieved because of the flood situation in Pakistan. He offered his condolences and informed me of the sympathy of the Turkish people for Pakistanis. He said the people of Turkey are deeply concerned and are willing to sacrifice their lives and wealth for Pakistan and that all their prayers are with their Pakistani brothers and sisters.

Our elders have passed on to us the respect instilled in their hearts for the Ottoman Empire. Even now they grieve its memory and pray that Turkey may once again become the torch bearer of Islam.

Javed Iqbal, Islamabad, Pakistan