43 killed as suicide bomber hits tribal Jirga in Orakzai

[FarCenter]

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Scores injured; pro-govt tribesmen targeted

By Syed Hasan Mahmood, Syed Yasir Shah & Mushtaq Yusufzai

KALAYA/KOHAT/PESHAWAR: Forty-three members of the Ali Khel tribe were killed and scores of others injured, many of them seriously, when a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden pick-up truck into a Jirga in Hadeezai area of the Orakzai tribal agency on Friday afternoon. Official and tribal sources said the death toll could mount as many of the injured shifted to various hospitals in Orakzai, Hangu and Kohat were in a critical condition. The victims also included children.

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Eyewitnesses told The News from Ghiljo, the Tehsil headquarters of the Orakzai Agency, that over 2,000 tribesmen of the Ali Khel tribe were holding a Jirga when a young suicide bomber, driving an explosives-packed pick-up truck, entered there and blew himself up.

The Ali Khel tribe, which had raised an armed tribal Lashkar against the Taliban militants and destroyed two of their training centres in Hadeezai and Kronz villages of Orakzai Agency, had convened the grand Jirga for future line of action against the militants. One of the witnesses, Meraj Gul, who shifted his two injured brothers to the District Headquarters Hospital, Kohat, told The News by telephone that he saw several bodies on the ground after the blast. He said over 200 people were injured and were crying for help.

He said the Jirga had just started its proceedings and tribal elders, including Haji Sabeel, Subedar Qadir Shah, Maulana Surat Gul and Dost Ali Khan, were informing the Jirga members about their successes and future strategy when the suicide bomber carried out the attack. Except for Haji Sabeel, who was leading the Jirga, all the remaining tribal chieftains lost their lives in the attack. The sources said the Ali Khel tribal Lashkar had destroyed two main centres of Taliban and announced to set on fire more of their hideouts in Dabori, Hadeezai and Ghiljo.

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http://thenews.jang.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=17743

[eleny]

1. How terribly sad

Since reading Three Cups of Tea about the work of Greg Mortenson in the nearby areas this comes as very bad news. He's in Afghanistan and Pakistan right now. Hoping he's safe.
http://www.ikat.org/

But again, this is awful news.