Militants, dressed in battle fatigues, Monday made a brazen attempt to storm the US consulate in this northwest Pakistani city with car bombs and grenades as a suicide bomber unleashed carnage at a rally near Peshawar killing at least 46 people. While 43 people were killed and over 100 injured in the suicide bombing in Timergara in lower Dir, three others, including a policeman, lost their lives in the attack targeting the American consulate. Pakistan's Taliban claimed responsibility for the consulate attack, claiming it was to avenge a US drone war targeting top militants in Pakistan's border areas with Afghanistan, and threatened further assaults on Americans. At least six militants armed with explosives and two car bombs targeted the heavily guarded US consulate, setting off multiple explosions. The US condemned the “terrorist” attack, saying at least two Pakistani security guards employed by the consulate were killed and a number of others seriously wounded. “The coordinated attack involved a vehicle suicide bomb and terrorists attempting to enter the building using grenades and weapons fire,” said the American embassy in Islamabad. Police said two car bombs exploded – at a checkpoint 50 meters from the mission and the second laden with about 100 kilograms of explosives close to the consulate gate, followed by an exchange of fire. North West Frontier Province Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain told reporters that five security officials and six militants were killed in the exchange of fire. The attack also killed 43 people during political rally in Timergirah sub-district of Lower Dir (North West Frontier Province or NWFP) organized by the Awami National Party (ANP), which heads the coalition government in the NWFP. The Awami National Party (ANP) had organized a political rally to celebrate over the renaming of the NWFP as Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa as per its demand in the 18th constitutional amendment that was tabled in the parliament last week. The party was observing the “Yaum-e-Tashakkur” (thanks giving day).
