Blast rocks Islamabad police station, 8 injured

ISLAMABAD BLAST: The region has seen an upsurge of terrorist activities in the recent times

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Islamabad: A powerful explosion hit a police station in the center of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, on Thursday, wounding at least eight people, police said.

"We have heard a huge explosion. We are trying to find out the cause," a police official told a TV channel.

The explosion was heard more than 10 km away. "It seems to be a suicide attack," said another police officer.

Residents of the neighbourhood said that smoke could be seen coming out of the Anti Terrorist Force (ATF) headquarters. Reports say that a part of the building collapsed as a car filled with explosives rammed into the building.

The building where the blast occurred is located near two main universities and three hospitals. It is a high security zone and rangers have cordoned off the area.

A joint session of the parliament was being briefed by senior military officials elsewhere, when the blast happened. Incidentally, the briefing was on the measures taken to counter terrorism.

Islamabad has been on edge for several weeks since the suicide truck bomb went off in the city on September 20, killing 55 people. It had left more than 250 people wounded and had also destroyed the Marriott hotel.

Among the victims were two U.S. military personnel, the Czech ambassador to Pakistan and a Danish intelligence service employee.

Pakistan's president, prime minister and other Cabinet members were set to have dinner at the hotel at the time of the blast. The plan, however, was changed at the last minute.

There are fears of more bomb attacks in reaction to an army offensive against Islamist militant strongholds in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.

Pakistan has been increasingly rocked by such attacks in the recent past.

• September 20: Eight people were killed in a suicide attack on a military convoy in Miranshah
• September 20: The massive suicide attack on Marriot hotel in Islamabad left 60 dead
• October 2: Four people were killed in an attack on Awami National Party (ANP) chief Asfandyar Wali Khan
• October 6: Suicide blast targeting PML-N leader killed 20
• October 7: On Tuesday, 3 explosions rocked Lahore, injuring 5