Pakistan: Massive blast destroys police building

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- A well-coordinated attack involving gunmen and an explosives-packed van reduced a police building to rubble in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore on Wednesday.

The scene of an apparent suicide car bomb attack on a police building in Lahore on May 27.

1 of 2


var CNN_ArticleChanger = new CNN_imageChanger('cnnImgChngr','/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/27/lahore.blast/imgChng/p1-0.init.exclude.html',1,1);
//CNN.imageChanger.load('cnnImgChngr','imgChng/p1-0.exclude.html');
Amid the confusion and the chaos in Pakistan's second-largest city, various officials offered conflicting casualty counts -- with almost all agreeing that at least 23 were killed. Most were police officers and staffers.
The blast also wounded more than 250, with one hospital -- Sir Ganga Ram, itself damaged by the explosion -- alone treating 128 victims.
Authorities expected the death toll to rise as rescue workers pick through twisted metal and other debris, looking for more bodies. Watch more on the attack »
The attack comes amid a Pakistani military offensive to remove militants from their haven in the northwestern part of the country.
Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistan Taliban, had threatened to target major Pakistani cities if the operations did not cease.
"The enemies of Pakistan are trying their very best to use every venue to destabilize the country," Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters Wednesday.
The blast occurred on Mall Road near the city police headquarters and the high court. It is one of Lahore's busiest areas.
A passenger van, laden with explosives, broke through a security barrier and was headed toward the police building when guards opened fire to stop it, said Lahore's district coordination officer, Sajjad Ahmed Bhutta.
The two sides exchanged gunfire, with the attackers hurling grenades, said Faisal Gulzar, a deputy police superintendent. Watch rescue workers respond to the scene »
The van exploded before it could reach the building. It was carrying an estimated 100 kg (220 pounds) of explosives, Bhutta said.
The impact was immense, with the targeted building collapsing. It housed the city's rapid response team, which is dispatched during emergencies.
Don't Miss
Taliban seek return to peace deal in Pakistan
Refugees survive on food 'cows won't eat'
Pakistan intensifies offensive against militants in northwest
Pakistan court allows Nawaz Sharif to run for office
At least 50 people were thought to have been inside the two-story building at the time, said police spokesman Ray Nazar Hayat.
The police headquarters that sits adjacent to the building was also damaged, with motorcycles from a nearby dealership strewed about and charred by the heat.
The roof of four operating rooms caved at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, with 40 medical staff members suffering minor wounds.
Police waved away onlookers in vain. Many of them jumped over the collapsed walls of the destroyed building to look for survivors. Semi-conscious officers in blood-stained uniforms were pulled from under wooden planks.
Immediately after, police arrested two suspects, said City Commissioner Khusro Pervez.
Local television showed the men being led away by a phalanx of officers.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, with suspicion falling on the beleaguered Islamic militants in the northwest who had vowed revenge.
"We're doing our best," Malik, the interior minister, said of the offensive in the northwest. "Please do not forget we're in a state of insurgency. It's a fight for our survival. We had two choices: We surrender our country or we save it for our next generation."
Lahore is Pakistan's cultural capital, far removed from the fundamentalist interpretation of Islam that is embraced in the north of the country, which borders Afghanistan.
Still, it has sporadically been swept into widening Islamist violence that grips the country.
In March, gunmen hurled grenades and opened fire on officers at a police training center, killing at least seven cadets.
The same month, gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying members of the Sri Lankan national cricket team on their way to a stadium for a match. The attack wounded at least eight members of the team and killed a driver and six Pakistani police officers.
"Everywhere in the city is insecurity," Haris Nadeem, a student in Lahore, said Wednesday. "You never know when a blast is going to occur or where. A shopping center? A government office?"
Still, said Saleem Khan, residents forge ahead.
"We will avoid places when they are crowded, but we can't change everything," he said. "We can't stop going out of our houses. Life has to go on."

US delegation lauds Kamal for city’s uplift

KARACHI: The US Trade and Development Agency Country Manager for South Asia Jacob Flewelling, US Consulate Specialist Malik Muhammad Atiq and Council of Economic Affairs’s Mary Elizebeth called on City Nazim Mustafa Kamal in the evening on Saturday.The delegation was briefed in detail about the city’s development; the members lauded Kamal for his great contribution to the development of the city and remarked that investors from across the globe are intending to come to the city because of its vast potential and geostrategic importance.Kamal informed the delegation about the city’s mega projects and said that although various impediments were witnessed in the way of completion and maintenance of the city’s projects, the City District Government Karachi (CDGK) successfully addressed the neglected issues faced by the citizens of the city.He told the delegation that it was a tedious job to initiate mega projects in the city, especially those relating to water and sewerage infrastructures and the Signal Free Corridors (SFC) while the land mafia had illegally occupied some of the land owned by the CDGK, which was causing problems in the initiation and completion of several projects.The Bagh-e-Ibn-e-Qasim was one such project; previously, the park measured a total of 130-acres and was fully encroached upon, however, the CDGK recovered the land and offered a dedicated park to the citizens of the city, revealed Kamal, adding that similarly, the SFC-III was almost an impossible task but it is now nearing completion. He went on to say that the vehicle parking issues in Saddar Town was also a giant issue that the CDGK resolved by constructing a seven-storey parking plaza there. The CDGK invested Rs 300 billion in making Karachi into a developed city of the world while Rs 30 billion were spent on laying water and sewerage infrastructure because no arrangements of the sort were previously available despite the rapid growth of the city’s population.It is on record that the CDGK has resolved issues that were never given importance for the past 60 years in only three and a half years, added Kamal.It is for the first time in the history of Pakistan that the islands of the city that were deprived of the basic water and sewerage facilities for last three centuries have now been facilitated with water lines worth millions of rupees, claimed Kamal.

‘Govt should nationalise KESC’

KARACHI: MQM’s Rabita Committee has urged the government to review the privatisation of the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) and nationalise the utility immediately. In a statement, the committee criticised the KESC for the prolonged power outages in Karachi and demanded that the government take concrete steps to relieve the citizens. “Unannounced load shedding by the KESC authorities has disturbed the citizens’ routine life. Industrial and commercial activities in the city have also been badly affected due to the 10-12 hours of non-supply of electricity,” the statement read. staff report

General sales tax rate may be raised to 17 percent in budget

ISLAMABAD (May 25 2009): The government may increase standard rate of general sales tax (GST) from 16 percent to 17 percent across the board in the upcoming 2009-10 budget to generate additional revenue for meeting the enhanced collection target in the next fiscal year.Sources told Business Recorder on Saturday that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is likely to propose to the Ministry of Finance to raise sales tax rate by one percent on all items to meet revenue requirements in the next fiscal year. If the government agrees with the proposal, it would be a major revenue generation measure for improving sales tax collection which is an indirect tax, defined as one with a greater incidence on the poor relative to the rich.The standard rate of value-added tax (VAT) in the UK is 15 percent with effect from December 1, 2008 until 31 December 2009. The rate will revert to 17.5 percent with effect from January 1, 2010. The standard rate of VAT in Ireland is 21.5 percent.The standard rate of VAT in Belgium is 21 percent; Bulgaria 20 percent; Denmark 25 percent; Germany 19 percent; France 19.6 percent; Italy 20 percent; Netherlands 19 percent; Austria 20 percent; Poland 22 percent; Portugal 20 percent; Romania 19 percent; Finland 22 percent and the standard rate of VAT in Sweden is 25 percent.As far as India is concerned, VAT was introduced in India on April 1, 2005, at a rate of 12.5 percent. Various states like Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Delhi and Haryana have introduced VAT on certain goods and services with different tax slabs specified in schedules in their respective statutes. Though 12.5 percent VAT is a low rate, there is also "central sales tax" and "service tax" applicable on various goods and services respectively.From the foregoing, it is evident that developed countries, with high income levels and low levels of extreme poverty, high sales tax rate is the norm. Be that as it may, Pakistan may rely on raising this tax as a way to increase its revenue as it is expected to be (i) more acceptable than say tax on the income of rich farmers, and (ii) the mechanism for its collection is already in place.The FBR may generate an additional amount, over and above Rs 26 billion, in 2009-10 following raise in GST from 16 percent to 17 percent. If the proposal is considered by the Finance Ministry, section 3 of the Sales Tax Act 1990 requires amendment through Finance Bill 2009-10 to upward revise the sales tax rate on import and local supply of all items/services liable to this levy.According to sources, the existing 16 percent sales tax might be adjusted upward, depending on the final decision of Finance Ministry. However, the proposal has been drafted at the FBR level to increase sales tax rate in the coming budget.It is worth mentioning that the government had increased sales tax rate from 15 percent to 16 percent in the budget for fiscal year 2008-09. As sales tax on provincial services is charged under the Sales Tax Act, 1990, the rate of tax on provincial services was also brought in line with the provision of Sales Tax Act, 1990. The sales tax on provincial services was also increased from 15 percent to 16 percent from 2008-09.The FBR had also increased sales tax from 20 percent to 21 percent on the import and local supply of 70 industrial inputs/raw materials and raised sales tax from 17.5 percent to 18.5 percent on nine items during the budget 2008-09. As the standard rate of sales tax was increased from 15 percent to 16 percent, this necessitated a sales tax rate increase from 17.5 percent to 18.5 percent and from 20 percent to 21 percent

India faces greater threat from China than Pakistan

NEW DELHI (May 25 2009): India faces a greater threat from China than Pakistan because New Delhi knows little about Beijing's combat capabilities, India's air force chief told a newspaper in an interview published on Sunday.The world's two most populous nations fought a brief but brutal war over their 3,500 km (2,200 mile) Himalayan border in 1962, and both sides claim the other is occupying big but largely uninhabited chunks of their territory. India has also been pursuing closer relations with the United States, something that worries China.China has a standing army almost three times the size of Pakistan's, according to official figures and defence industry estimates, but it is the lack of knowledge about China's military that concerned Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major. "We know very little about the actual capabilities of China, their combat edge or how professional their military is," Major told the Hindustan Times newspaper."They are certainly a greater threat." Although India and China have signed a treaty to maintain "peace and tranquility" along their disputed frontier and agreed to find a political solution to the row, talks have hardly made progress even as their business ties boom.India blames the lack of progress on China's claim over the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, in particular over its Buddhist enclave of Tawang. New Delhi says it cannot part with populated areas to settle the border dispute. Major said the Indian air force was upgrading about five airbases, of which two would operate Russian Su-30 MKI fighters.

JSQM calls strike against IDPs arrival, MQM de-links

KARACHI (updated on: May 25, 2009, 13:37 PST): Shops in Karachi closed Monday, witnesses said, after nationalists called a strike to protest the arrival of refugees from the conflict-hit northwest.A leader of the MQM said they did not back the strike action, but voiced concern at the handling of the influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs).The Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM) movement, which promotes the cause of natives of Sindh province, opposes the influx of ethnic Pashtuns fleeing a military offensive in three northwest districts.Security forces are currently locked in battle with Taliban militants in the Swat valley, and more than 1.7 million people have fled the conflict-hit region since the assault began late last month."We don't see it as just an issue of helping the displaced people," said Abdul Wahid Aresar, who heads the JSQM."The motive behind their arrival in the southern-most part of Pakistan from the north is to marginalise the native Sindhis, which we will resist."Residents of Karachi said that only a small number of the displaced were arriving in the city, and most were staying with relatives."We don't support this strike call but yes, we want the IDP issue to be managed properly," said Shoaib Bokhari. "We have not stopped the IDPs' arrival in Sindh, but they should be registered and kept in camps outside our cities."It was the second strike called by JSQM. Shops also shut on Saturday.Provincial home minister Zulfiqar Mirza said the authorities had issued "shoot-on-sight" orders in case of an outbreak of violence, but the city remained calm and peaceful.More than half of the shops and marketplaces in Karachi -- Pakistan's largest city -- remained closed Monday, while attendance in government and private offices was sparse and fewer vehicles than normal plied the roads."We have received no report of disturbances," city police chief Waseem Ahmed told AFP.The city's stock market was open, port operations were running as usual and flight operations for international and domestic destinations were uninterrupted, officials said.

Lawmakers approve same-sex marriage in N.H., MaineStory Highlights

(CNN) -- Lawmakers voted in favor of same-sex marriage in New Hampshire and Maine on Wednesday, leaving Rhode Island as the only other New England state without legislation in favor of the issue.

Maine Gov. John Baldacci signed a bill Wednesday legalizing same-sex marriage.

Maine Gov. John Baldacci signed his state's same-sex marriage bill less than an hour after the legislature approved it.
"I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage," Baldacci, a Democrat, said in a statement released as he signed the bill.
But he raised the possibility that the citizens of the state would overturn the law, saying: "Just as the Maine Constitution demands that all people are treated equally under the law, it also guarantees that the ultimate political power in the state belongs to the people."
It was not immediately clear whether New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat who has questioned the need for such legislation, would sign the bill passed Wednesday by the legislature in his state. Lynch said last week he did not think the law is necessary because the state already recognizes civil unions.
If he does sign, his state will join New England neighbors Maine, Vermont, Connecticut and Massachusetts, which all have laws approving same-sex marriages. That would leave Rhode Island, which has same-sex marriage bills pending in its general assembly.
Iowa is the only other state that allows same-sex marriages, after the Iowa state Supreme Court ruled unanimously on April 3 that it is illegal to discriminate against same-sex couples by denying them the right to marry. The first gay marriages in the state took place April 27.
California's state Supreme Court issued a similar ruling in May 2008, after which some 18,000 gay and lesbian couples got married there. But California voters in November approved Proposition 8, which amended the state constitution to ban gay marriage. See which states allow same-sex unions »
The state's high court heard arguments earlier this year about whether Proposition 8 was itself constitutional, but it has not yet issued a verdict.
New York Gov. David Paterson introduced legislation in April to make same-sex marriage legal in his state. A similar bill died in the state Senate in 2007.
The District of Columbia voted Tuesday to recognize same-sex marriages performed elsewhere, but does not itself give marriage licenses to gay or lesbian couples.
In New Hampshire, the House voted 178-167 in favor of the legislation Wednesday after the Senate approved an amended version of the House's original bill last week. The amended version distinguishes between civil and religious marriage. It allows each religion to decide whether to acknowledge same-sex marriage, but extends the option of civil marriage to any two individuals.
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Campaign, a gay and lesbian rights organization, praised Maine's new law.
"This law is simply about making sure that loving, committed couples, and their families, receive equal rights and responsibilities. This is a step that will strengthen Maine families," Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese said in a written statement.
A slim majority of Americans are against legal recognition for same-sex marriage, CNN polling found last month. Fifty-four percent of adults questioned in an April 23-26 nationwide CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll said marriages between gay or lesbian couples should not be recognized as valid, while 44 percent said they should be considered legal.
But there was a huge gap between the opinions of younger and older people, with younger people far more likely to approve of gay marriage.