18 killed in northwest Pakistan blast: police

A Muhammad
Peshawar, Jan 17 (PTI) A powerful blast in a bus
killed at least 18 people and injured nine others in northwest
Pakistan today though the cause of the explosion could not
immediately be determined, police said.
The blast, which destroyed the bus, occurred at Alizai
Jozara near Hangu, a key city in Khyber-Pakhtunnkhwa province.
The minibus was heading to Kohat, another city located
close to the restive tribal belt.
District police chief Abdur Rashid told PTI the blast
was apparently caused by the explosion of gas cylinders.
He did not rule out the possibility of terror attack
and said a bomb disposal squad had been called in to
investigate the incident.
"A bomber might have been present in the bus," another
police official said.
Reports said the explosion apparently occurred after
the bus collided with a pick-up truck though this could not be
independently confirmed.
The injured were taken to a hospital in Hangu. PTI MUH
EKA


The information contained in this electronic message and any attachments to this
message are intended for the exclusive use of the addressee(s) and may contain
proprietary, confidential or privileged information. If you are not the intended
recipient, you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify
the sender immediately and destroy all copies of this message and any attachments
contained in it.