Two Taliban/Al Qaeda Suicide Bombers Kill 40 In Pakistan's Mohmand Agency

Two suicide bombers have hit the office compound of a government official in Mohmand agency in NW Pakistan and the death toll appears to be 40 with many more injured. There is no official word yet whether this was Taliban or al Qaeda that pulled this off.

From the Reuters report via Breitbart:

Two suspected suicide bombers killed at least 40 people in an attack at the office compound of a senior government official in an area along Pakistan's Afghan border Monday, officials said.

"The blasts destroyed many rooms in the compound and our reports are 40 people were killed and many wounded," a senior security official in the region said.

Amjad Ali Khan, the top government official in the Mohmand region who appeared to be the target of the attack, earlier told Reuters by telephone that it appeared to be a suicide attack.

"There were two bombers. They were on foot. The first blew himself up inside the office of one of my deputies while the second one set off explosives when guards caught him."

Now, this bombing attack comes just a few days after the Taliban claimed that they would take out any government officials in the NW region who were siding with the government - a typical strategy of the Taliban where they make a threat and then immediately show they are serious about it. The idea here, in part, is to get local government officials to push back against the national government's efforts to conduct operations in the northwestern provinces and agencies.

At the same time, it's a bit odd that these two guys got into this close of proximity to a government official and "inside the wire." I'd say that it's a safe bet that we'll see another one of these suicide bombings at another official's compound within the next 24 to 48 hours.

(File photo)

Suicide blasts kill 40 in Pakistan's northwest


(Reuters) - Two suspected suicide bombers killed at least 40 people in an attack at the office compound of a senior government official in an area along Pakistan's Afghan border Monday, officials said.

"The blasts destroyed many rooms in the compound and our reports are 40 people were killed and many wounded," a senior security official in the region said.

Amjad Ali Khan, the top government official in the Mohmand region who appeared to be the target of the attack, earlier told Reuters by telephone that it appeared to be a suicide attack.

"There were two bombers. They were on foot. The first blew himself up inside the office of one of my deputies while the second one set off explosives when guards caught him."

Mohmand is one of the lawless tribal regions in Pakistan's northwest.

Pakistan's army has said its offensives have weakened al Qaeda-linked Pakistani Taliban militants seeking to destabilize the U.S.-backed government. But analysts say they often melt away during assaults.