At least 6 killed as car bombing rocks Karachi
From Zeeshan Mirza

KARACHI—A powerful car bomb exploded outside a KFC restaurant in Karachi today killing at least six people and wounding dozens others initial reports said.
The blast struck at about 8:45 am, as commuters were heading to shops and offices in the crowded business hub. Police said the car had been parked outside a KFC fast food outlet, and caused casualties in a nearby office block housing several oil and gas companies.
“We have taken six dead bodies to hospital,” an ambulance crew member for the Edhi Foundation told this scribe. The blast badly damaged the restaurant, part of the global American fast food chain, burning and overturning several cars in the street. The fast food outlet and a nearby bank branch were destroyed.
According to Karachi police chief Mushtaq Shah, the bomb was concealed in a car parked outside the restaurant. Hundreds of people gathered at the site near the Pearl Intercontinental Hotel that is popular with foreign tourists and business people.
“I can see that the KFC building is burning, six cars have caught fire and injured people are lying on the road,” said an eyewitness Anwar Saeed who rushed to the scene after hearing the blast.
The restaurant occupies the ground floor of a government office building housing the Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation. Firefighters prevented the blaze from spreading to other parts of the building.
Agencies add: Details revealed that the bomb was apparently went off in the car parked in close vicinity of KFC restaurant and chief minister house while the blast was of high intensity, which left windowpanes of Sheraton and PC hotels smashed.
The dead were identified as Sabz Wali and Iftikhar Ali security guards of MCB and Javed Iqbal while the injured Muhammad Ilyas, Javed, Khan Bahadur, Noor-ul-Haq, Meraj, Hussain Ali, Faizan, Asif, Sadiq, Faisal, Aslam, Noor Khan, Asad, Mehboob, Allah Ditta and an unidentified one were rushed to Jinnah and civil hospitals most of them in critical condition.
Most of the vehicles parked within the building were damaged completely. In a chat with media-people on the spot, DIG Sindh said that the bomb was planted in the car and the powerful blast caused fire, which engulfed other vehicles parked there.
Chief Minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim soon after the explosion prompted to say that relief work has been initiated and security of the areas is tightened to maintain law and order.
He noted that the area where the explosion took place was extremely sensitive where foreigners had been settled in Sheraton and PC hotels.
“The elements carrying out anti-state activities will be dealt with iron hands and I appeal to the people to extend cooperation to the government to track down elements involved in this dirty game,” he underscored.
The government of Sindh announced Rs. 0.2 million each for dead and Rs.25000 for each injured. Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has dispelled the spat of speculations of a suicide attack. He said we are not sure who is behind this heinous act. President General Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday condemned bombing in Karachi and dubbed it as an act of terrorism.
President and directed the concerned authorities to launch an immediate and thorough investigation into it.
“We condemn this dastardly act-whoever is responsible for this should be held accountable in accordance with the law,” he said.
The President expressed profound grief and sorrow over loss of innocent lives in the bombing incident and offered condolences to the bereaved families.
He asked the concerned authorities to provide best medical treatment to the injured.