KARACHI (AP) – A suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden vest near a van carrying Japanese autoworkers, who narrowly escaped the attack yesterday that wounded three bystanders in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi, police said.
The van had been heading to an industrial area where the five Japanese nationals worked at Pakistan Suzuki Motors, Police Chief Arshad Awan said. He said police escorting the Japanese returned fire after coming under attack, killing an accomplice of the suicide bomber whose remains were found from the scene of the attack.
“All the Japanese who were the target of the attack are safe,” he said. Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack on the Japanese nationals. In separate statements, they praised police for quickly responding and foiling the attack. They also vowed to eliminate terrorism and prayed for the speedy recovery of those wounded in the attack.
Awan said the three passersby who were wounded in the attack were in stable condition at a hospital.
Police were escorting the van after receiving reports about possible attacks on foreigners who are working in Pakistan, said senior police officer Tariq Mastoi.
He said a timely and quick response from the guards and police foiled the attack and both attackers were killed.
No one immediately claimed responsibility, but suspicion is likely to fall on a small separatist group or the Pakistani Taleban who have stepped up attacks on security forces in recent years.
Insurgents have also targeted Chinese who are working in Pakistan on projects relating to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which includes a multitude of megaprojects such as road construction, power plants and agriculture.
