Powerful Blast Rocks Pakistan, 7 killed Including Home Minister

Police said the attack in Attock caused the roof to cave in while Shuja Khanzada, the home minister of Punjab province, was holding meetings with about 20 people.

The United States has strongly condemned Sunday’s attack on the Punjab Home Minister Colonel (retd) Shuja Khanzada’s pubic office in Attock, and offered its assistance in investigation into the incident.

Khanzada’s staff confirmed he was in the office at the time of the blast and was injured, Dawn News channel reported.

The Punjab cabinet on Monday paid rich tributes to martyred Home Affairs Minister Shuja Khanzada, who was assassinated in a suicide attack on Sunday.

A preliminary report submitted to Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif by Sukhera said the minister was killed inretaliation of the killing of Lashkar-e-Jhanghvi chief Malik Ishaq in July 29 in Muzaffargarh district of Punjab.

Khanzada was at the fore of a campaign to target Pakistan’s Taliban and the group or its affiliates are strongly suspected of carrying out the attack.

“The attack will not deter our national resolve to eliminate the menace of terrorism”, the army chief said.

Punjab is Pakistan’s biggest and wealthiest province and Attock is located at its northern tip, on the road between Islamabad and Peshawar.

Another official, Deeba Shahnaz, said 17 people were wounded in the explosion, four of whom were in critical condition.

The minister’s death is being seen as a significant blow to Pakistan’s recent gains in the fight against militancy and extremism, says the BBC’s Shahzeb Jillani in Islamabad.

According to Retired Major General Mubashir Zahid it appeared that those involved in the attack had some sympathisers in the government ranks.

The minister was reportedly receiving threat calls from various terrorist organizations ever since a targeted operation against the terrorists was launched in the province last month.