Archives

QUETTA, Pakistan, Sept 29 (AFP) - A small bomb exploded outside a Christian prayer hall in the southwestern Pakistani city of Kohlu Sunday, causing minor damage to its outer wall but no casualties, police said.

The explosion occurred around 11:00 am (0500 GMT). A few Catholic worshippers were inside the building but no one was hurt, they said.

"The device was of low intensity. It partially damaged the building's outer wall," a police officer at Baluchistan's provincial police headquarters in the provincial capital Quetta told AFP.

A small Christian community resides in the remote Kohlu region some 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of Quetta.

Catholic priest Father Maximus, a leader of the Christian community in Quetta, said some 26 Christian families live in Kohlu.

He said described the lightly damaged building as a prayer hall.

"There is no formal church building. It is only a hall which is used for different purposes including prayers by the Christian community," the priest told AFP.

He said he had received no reports of casualties.

The Islamic republic's minority Christian community has been wracked by a series of attacks since Pakistan swung its support by the US-led campaign to oust the Taliban and al-Qaeda from Afghanistan in September last year.

Five deadly strikes on churches, a school and the office of a Christian charity organisation have left 38 people dead, mainly Pakistanis. 

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries |

Produced by Lake House
Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager