Pakistan: Truck blast kill sdozens as MPs elect new president

An explosives-packed pick-up truck blew up a police security checkpoint in north-western Pakistan, killing at least 30 people and wounding dozens more, a day after a foiled militant kidnap attempt led to another 24 deaths in the volatile region.

The suicide attack occurred on the outskirts of Peshawar as MPs across the country voted to elect Asif Ali Zardari, the widower of murdered ex-prime minister Benazir Bhutto, as the new president. Mr Zardari has vowed to be tough on militancy.

Television footage showed a blast crater 3ft deep, destroyed vehicles and pieces of debris scattered across a large area. Officials said many people were trapped under the rubble of two collapsed buildings in a nearby market. Civilians dug frantically with their hands in hopes of finding survivors.

Nasirulmulk Bangash, a top police official in the area, said the vehicle carried at least 330lbs of explosives – an amount he called “unprecedented” - and was apparently en route to Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier Province.

He said the large quantity of explosives indicated the attack was aimed at a more important target than the small checkpoint, but might have been tripped up by high security on election day.

Peshawar police chief Muhammad Suleman said 30 people died, including five police officers and several who died in hospital or were found among the rubble.

He said the toll was likely to rise as rescue teams continued to dig.

Sher Zaman, 15, said from his hospital bed that he was selling fruit from a cart at the market when he heard a large explosion and was knocked down when something hit him in the chest.

No-one immediately claimed responsibility for Saturday’s blast.

In recent weeks, the Pakistani Taliban has said they it was to blame for a string of suicide bombings in revenge for military offensives in the north-west region that borders Afghanistan. One attack killed nearly 70 people at a major weapons factory.

Separately, the military said, residents of the Matta area, about 106 miles north of Peshawar, fought back against militants in the area, launching an attack on Friday night to prevent the anticipated kidnapping of a village elder accused of supporting the government. Six of the would-be kidnappers were killed.

But the militants later returned en masse, and ensuing clashes left 15 residents and three more militants dead, along with scores of wounded, the military said.

Pakistan has struggled to contain rising militancy in its borders, and the fledgling government has tried both peace talks and military operations to stop the insurgents.