Islamic militants blamed for Pakistan blast

The midnight suicide attack that killed up to 136 people and shattered the homecoming of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto might have been the work of al-Qaida and the Taliban, authorities in Pakistan said today.

The attack in Karachi – one of the deadliest in Pakistan’s history – bore the hallmarks of militants linked to pro-Taliban warlord Baitullah Mehsud and al-Qaida, according to Ghulam Muhammad Mohtarem, the top security official in the province.