.:: SAMAA - 8 killed in blast at a house in Karachi

By Shahid Rind

KARACHI: At least 8 people have been killed in an explosion at a house in Baldia Town, Karachi Friday morning. It is reported that Afghan citizens were residing in the house. The blast occurred in Baldia Town Sector 8, House no 804 near the Saeedabad police training centre.

Eyewitnesses told SAMAA that an injured man escaped the scene after the blast.

Four dead bodies can be seen under the rubble. SAMAA reporter present on the scene said that huge quantity of arms and ammunition is also present under the rubble, which is the reason rescue activities are being delayed.

Sources at Civil Hospital confirmed that 8 dead bodies have arrived there so far.

An eyewitness told SAMAA that women were also present in the house. The bomb disposal squad has not reached the blast scene and the rescue activities have not been started yet.

DIG West Jamshed Dasti told SAMAA that 5-6 people have been killed in the blast.

Heavy contingents of the police and rangers have cordoned off the areas.

Yousuf Zai, an eyewitness told SAMAA that the rescue activities could not be started and ammunition could be seen scattered near the blast scene.

MALIK ASKS ILLEGAL MIGRANTS TO LEAVE CITY IN 15 DAYS

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that strict action will be taken against all the illegal migrants in the city . He said that a meeting of National Alien Registration Authority (NARA) has been called today (Friday).

Malik said that he has given 15 days to all the illegal migrants to leave Karachi.

The interior minister said that Karachi police is not sufficient to deal with the city population and it will be increased soon.

REACTION

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani ordered the investigations into the matter while expressing his deep concern over the Baldia blast.

On the other hand, Muttahida Quomi Movement (MQM) is of the view that the terrorists are making Karachi their safe haven.

Chief of MQM, Altaf Hussain, also called on for a thorough probe into the blast and said that he has been indicating the presence of terrorists in the city for a long while, however, it is not being taken into serious consideration.

He has also urged the public to keep an eye on the activities taking place in their surroundings.

Moreover, Deputy Speaker Sindh Assembly Shehla Raza told Samaa that there could have been a big disaster in Karachi if the destroyed weapons were used. The terrorists became a victim of their own armaments, she added.

AGENCIES ADD: Six suspected militants were killed on Friday when explosives being stored in a hideout in the Pakistani city of Karachi were apparently detonated accidently, police said.

Karachi has been largely been free of militant violence over the past couple of years, but a bomb at a procession by minority Shi'ite Muslims in the city last week fuelled concerns that the militants are expanding their fight to Pakistan's commercial hub.

Friday's blast, in a poor neighbourhood of the sprawling southern city, is likely to add to those fears.

"It looks like the people inside the house were some militants," said area police official Ghulam Hussain Korai.

Six people were killed in the blast, which brought down the house, and weapons were found in the rubble, Karachi police chief Waseem Ahmed told Reuters.

"Police have recovered one Kalashnikov rifle and two hand grenades," Ahmed told Reuters. "We have also taken into custody two suspects who were injured in the blast."

Karachi is home to Pakistan's main stock market, the central bank and its two main ports.

As the country's industrial hub, the city generates 68 percent of government revenue and 25 percent of gross domestic product.

While investors in Pakistan have got used to almost daily violence in the northwest, near the Afghan border, bloodshed in Karachi is more likely to dent sentiment. SAMAA/AGENCIES