Islamabad: Pakistan's former Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao and his son had a narrow escape when a suicide bomber blew himself up near their motorcade in the country's restive northwest on Saturday, killing two policemen and injuring six other persons.
The attacker targeted Sherpao's motorcade as he was travelling to Peshawar after addressing a rally in Charsadda district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. The bomber detonated his explosive vest as the convoy was moving along a narrow street in Kangra village.
Sherpao escaped unhurt while his son Sikander, the driver of their car and legislator Mohammad Ali sustained minor injuries, officials said. One policeman was killed instantly while another succumbed to his injuries in hospital, officials said. Three more policemen were among the injured.
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for the attack. A spokesman for the Taliban in Mohmand tribal region called journalists in Peshawar and said his group had carried out the attack.The injured were taken to Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Footage on television showed Sherpao and his son leaving the hospital along with their supporters.Sherpao's SUV was damaged by ball bearings packed into the suicide bomber s vest. Shards of glass lay on the seats, which were spattered with blood.Officials said a police vehicle had borne the brunt of the blast.
Sherpao, who heads the Pakistan People's Party-S and is a member of parliament, served as Interior Minister in former military ruler Pervez Musharraf's regime.He told reporters in Peshawar that terrorist attacks would not stop his political activities.
"These attacks are part of my life. These cowardly attacks cannot terrify me," he said.The former minister has been targeted several times by the Taliban, who accuse Sherpao of carrying out operations against militants and arresting several commanders.
In December 2007, 54 people were killed and over 100 injured when a suicide attacker blew himself up in a packed mosque in Charsadda in a bid to target Sherpao.Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani strongly condemned the suicide attack on Sherpao and said he was relieved at the news that the former minister had survived.
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