Scores killed in Pakistan suicide bomb blasts

Police in Pakistan say at least 69 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack in the north west of the country.

It happened at a training academy for paramilitaries in the town of Charsadda near Peshawar. The vast majority of the victims were young recruits, on their way out of the academy on leave when the bomber is said to have approached on a motorbike.

Police say there was a second explosion at around the same time. It is not yet known whether this was also a suicide bomb, but one witness reported seeing bodies.

It is the first major attack in Pakistan since al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in the country. The Taliban, allied to al Qaeda, say they carried out the attack to avenge bin Laden’s death. They had vowed to retaliate by attacking the Pakistani government and American interests.

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