Terror Attack Kills 67 in India
A firebomb attack aboard a train from India to Pakistan has killed at least 67 people.
DEEWANA, India (AFP) - Sixty-seven people have burned to death after blasts ignited a fireball on a train from India to Pakistan in an attack condemned as terrorism aimed at derailing the South Asian peace process.
Explosives found in two suitcases directly pointed to sabotage, Indian Railways Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav told reporters Monday following the midnight blast on the “Samjhauta (Friendship) Express”.
The blasts came on the eve of a visit by Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri, who called the attack a “horrendous act of terrorism”. He said most of the victims were Pakistani nationals taking the cross-border train home.
Experts said explosives were used to ignite bottles of kerosene in the train, which was carrying more than 750 people when the blasts occurred near Deewana station, 100 kilometres (60 miles) north of New Delhi. …
New Delhi Television, citing intelligence sources, said the blasts may have been linked to an attack on commuter trains in Mumbai last July that left at least 185 dead and led India to suspend peace talks for several months.
Apparently, no one has claimed responsibility yet. This could be retaliation from Hindu terrorists for the Islamic terror attack last year, but in the past Hindu counterattacks have usually taken place immediately following an Islamist mass murder; plotting train bombings isn’t really the Hindu style.