A pair of suicide bombers disguised as policemen killed 50 people on Monday when they attacked a government compound in northwestern Pakistan where tribal elders were meeting to discuss the formation of an anti-Taliban militia, officials said.
The attack in Mohmand, part of Pakistan's militant-infested tribal region, was the latest to target local tribesmen who have been encouraged by the government to take up arms against the Taliban.
The explosions also wounded more than 100 people - many of them critically – according to officials.
One of the reasons the attacks were so deadly was because the bombers had filled their suicide jackets with bullets, said Amjad Ali Khan, the top political official in Mohmand, who was at the government compound in Ghalanai town when it was attacked.
"These bullets killed everyone who was hit," said Khan.
Both of the bombers were disguised in tribal police uniforms, said Khan. One of them was caught at the gate of the compound, but he was able to detonate his explosives, he said.
One of the wounded in the attack was 45-year-old Qalandar Khan, who came to the compound to visit an imprisoned cousin and was hit by the second explosion.
"There was a deafening sound and it caused a cloud of dust and smoke and a subsequent hue and cry," said Khan, laying in a hospital bed in his blood-soaked clothes. "There were dozens on the ground like me, bleeding and crying. I saw body parts scattered in the compound."
The Pakistani army has carried out operations in Mohmand to battle Taliban and al-Qaida fighters in the area, but it has been unable to defeat the militants.
The military has encouraged local tribesmen to form militias to oppose the militants. These groups have had varying degrees of success and have often been targeted in deadly attacks. Another bomber attacked a mosque in the region in early November.
Questions:
1. How many people died?
2. Where was the attack?
3. When did another bomber attack a mosque in the region?
Answers:
1. 50.
2. Mohmand.
3. Early November.
(中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑)
Todd Balazovic is a reporter for the Metro Section of China Daily. Born in Mineapolis Minnesota in the US, he graduated from Central Michigan University and has worked for the China Daily for one year.