Pak-India Commerce Ministers To Meet Next Month

The meeting has been convened at the initiative of Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma who has extended a formal invitation to his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Amin Fahim to discuss several issues, reviving hopes that the two countries would fully exploit the potential of bilateral trade.

“Yes, we have received a formal invitation from the Indian commerce minister. He has invited Pakistani commerce minister to visit India to discuss several trade-related issues,” a source in the commerce ministry told Dawn on Friday.

At a meeting in April this year commerce secretaries of the two countries expressed willingness to proceed further on issues like removing non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and Pakistan extending Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India.

The source said it would be an important meeting and Pakistan would urge India to end its opposition to the European Union preferential trade package offered to Pakistan in the wake of last year’s devastating floods.

In the April meeting, India agreed to remove Pakistan-specific non-tariff barriers (NTBs), and if it materialises it will be widely
hailed by Pakistani businessmen who want access to Indian markets.

The issue regarding improving trade facilitation measures at the Wagha border would also be discussed during the meeting, the source said.

To reciprocate the offer, Pakistan has offered to grant the MFN status to India, but it was conditional to removal of NTBs by India. It is expected that the MFN status to India may be considered in October, 2011.

The source said Pakistan was optimistic of getting a positive response from India on the issue of EU trade package and the removal of NTBs. In case of a positive move, the source said, the case of granting India the MFN status would become easier.

There is also an understanding to start a bilateral preferential trade agreement with India. There have been reports that the bilateral trade could increase to $6.5 billion from less than $2 billion.

Pakistan wanted India to remove NTBs such as insisting on lab tests for textiles and directing imports of specific goods through designated terminals.

Indian officials deny any Pakistan-specific NTBs, claiming they were meant for all imported goods.

Private Sector To Get Representation On Railways Board

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to obtain Rs6.1 billion loan from a consortium of commercial banks for Pakistan Railways’ bailout package of Rs11.1 billion.

The government will pay interest on the loan.

The Cabinet Committee on Restructuring (CCOR) of Public Sector Enterprises which met here on Friday with Finance Minister Dr Hafeez Shaikh in the chair decided to give representation to the provinces, experts and professionals from private sector, on the Railways’ executive committee and board.

The restructuring of the committee and board will be completed in a month.

Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, Minister for Privatisation Syed Khurshid Shah, Planning Commission’s Deputy Chairman Dr Nadeem-ul-Haque and officials of railways and finance ministries attended the meeting.

The meeting was informed that Rs4 billion would be provided through re-prioritisation of Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) of 2011-12 for improvement of tracks and rolling stock.

The meeting decided to increase the line of credit from the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) to Rs2 billion to ensure smooth supply of oil.

The meeting directed the Railways Ministry to restore in the shortest period of time all discontinued freight and passenger trains.Talking to newsmen after the meeting, Mr Bilour said the finance ministry would obtain a loan of Rs6.1 billion from commercial banks and he had been informed about the remaining Rs5 billion that his ministry should have to submit PC-1 about its projects to the planning commission.

Sources in Railways said the PC-1 was almost ready and would be submitted to the commission in a few days.

It may be mentioned that Pakistan Railways accumulated a deficit of Rs52.5 billion till the end of June this year.

Hundreds of locomotives have been grounded in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi for want of spare parts.

Insufficient number of locomotives has been the principal reason for the declining performance of railways over the past two years.

Meanwhile, Railways will continue to receive Rs2 billion per month from the federal government as part of subsidy to pay salaries, pensions and for expenses on fuel.

The government is seeking two loans of $650 million from the Asian Development Bank for the railways sector investment programme.

The loans are scheduled to be approved in August 2012.

PPP and MQM In New Move For Patch-Up

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah appeared optimistic on Friday about a positive outcome of a meeting held in Islamabad between President Asif Ali Zardari and Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad.

The chief minister’s optimism was strengthened by the unexpected presence at his Iftar party of some important MQM lawmakers, including Syed Sardar Ahmad, Raza Haroon, Dr Saghir Ahmad, Syed Faisal Sabzwari and Heer Sohu.

Talking to reporters after the Iftar hosted for journalists and local leaders of different political parties, the chief minister said Ramazan was a month of blessings and the presence of so many representatives of political parties, especially the MQM, was a good augury not only for Karachi, but also for Sindh and the rest of the country.

Asked about the possibility of the MQM rejoining the government, he said the governor was in Islamabad for talks with the “higher leadership”. He said he was hopeful about a positive outcome of the talks.

He said talking about rolling back the commissioner system after the return of the MQM was premature.

In reply to a question whether the MQM would get back the ministries which had been given to other coalition partners, he said one ought to have a big heart.

To another question, he said the interior minister would decide about a list of 500 alleged terrorists presented by MQM’s parliamentary leader Dr Farooq Sattar in the National Assembly. He said he had not seen it.

Sindh’s Local Government Minister Agha Siraj Durrani said he was confident the MQM would be back in the coalition before Eid.

He said concerns of the MQM on the commissioner system would be addressed to make it more effective.

Raza Haroon, who has been named leader of the opposition in Sindh Assembly by the MQM, said his party would make its stand known only after learning about the outcome of the meeting held in Islamabad.

Mr Haroon said the MQM had already made its concern over bloodletting known to the government and it expected swift
action against those responsible for the killings.

He said the restoration of the commissioner system was a regressive measure, asserting that the Muttahida would try to get it rolled back.

Mr Haroon said a committee named to sort out matters with the MQM had not met him.

The MQM leader said maintaining law and order and catching criminals was the responsibility of the provincial government.

Provincial Minister for Works and Services Dr Zulfikar Mirza said that if the MQM decided to rejoin the ruling coalition, it would extract a heavy price.

Mr Mirza was of the view that a way out could be found by incorporating into the commissioner system some ingredients of the defunct SLGO.

About MQM’s demand for calling the army to establish peace in Karachi, he said the armed forces were part of the government, the president was their supreme commander and he could take a decision on the matter.

Govt Given 4 Days To The Notify PCO Judges

ISLAMABAD: Exactly a week after its last skirmish with the executive, the Supreme Court displayed a slightly more assertive mood on Friday. Warning that it would not let anyone erode its authority, the court gave the government four more days to de-notify the dysfunctional superior court judges who had taken oath under the Provisional Constitution Order (PCO).

The court had on May 18 ordered the government to de-notify these judges and later gave it till July 26 to do so.

A five-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan, Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, Justice Sarmad Jalal Osmany and Justice Amir Hani Muslim extended the deadline to August 9 after the government, which is already wary of the apprehensions of yet another executive-judiciary row, assured the court that it would de-notify the dysfunctional judges the moment the chief executive returned to the capital and approved a pending summary.

“Dr Babar Awan has stated that the law secretary shall issue the requisite notification in pursuance of the May 18 judgment before August 9,” the chief justice said in an order issued after the assurance given by Dr Awan.

The bench was reviewing the implementation of its May 18 verdict.

The court set the July 26 deadline for implementation of its judgment after Law Secretary Masood Chishty had been summoned by one of its judges last month and asked to suggest to the government in clear terms to take a final decision on the matter.

The Supreme Court had on May 18 ruled that the dysfunctional judges had ceased to hold their offices after the passage of 18th and 19th Amendments. It said the PCO 2007 read with Oath of (Judges) Order 2007 had already been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court through a July 31, 2009, order on a Sindh High Court Bar Association’s petition. “Thus no immunity is available to them,” it said.

The (PCO) judges are still part of the judiciary but are dysfunctional and required to be de-notified in accordance with the court orders. They are: Justices Syed Shabbar Raza Rizvi, Hasnat Ahmed Khan, Syed Hamid Ali Shah and Syed Sajjad Hussain Shah of the Lahore High Court and Justice Ms Yasmeen Abbasey of the Sindh High Court. Although Justice Jehanzeb Rahim did not file an intra-court appeal, he will also be affected by the judgment.

At the outset on Friday, the court asked Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq and Law Secretary Masood Chishti why the judgment had not been implemented despite clear directions.

Former law minister Dr Babar Awan, representing the law secretary, told the court that the competent authority (prime minister) had not yet approved the summary sent to him by the law ministry on July 19. Under the Rules of Business of the federal government, the competent authority had to approve or disapprove the summary, he added.

“There is no question of any summary,” the chief justice observed. He said the judgment was the command of the court and a public property which had to be implemented at all cost. The chief justice reminded that rules and business of the federal government functioned under the Constitution which was supreme.

Dr Awan requested the court to give some time and said the prime minister was not in town and had gone to attend the death anniversary of his father and the notification would be issued soon after his return.

“We will not agree to this because the authority of the court is being compromised,” the chief justice said.

The court was apprehensive about the role played by acting law secretary Sultan Shah who had misguided the government by advising it not to de-notify the judges because references against them had been filed in the Supreme Judicial Council under Article 209 of the Constitution which provided the only legal way to send judges home.

Dr Awan informed the court that Sultan Shah had been hospitalised because of heart ailment.

When the court asked about a report which appeared in a section of the press relating to criticism of a court decision, Dr Awan dismissed the report as mere fiction.

President Asif Ali Zardari : Invites MQM To Rejoin Government

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari met with Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad on Friday and invited the MQM to rejoin the government, DawnNews reported.

Sources informed DawnNews that the president had expressed hope that MQM would unite with the government for the betterment of the people.

Sources also said that both president and governor Sindh agreed that Karachi unrest should end and peace should be brought to the city.

President Zardari said that the government would continue its reconciliation policy.

Ramazan Moon Sighted In Cities Across Pakistan

KARACHI: The Ramazan moon has been sighted in various parts of the country, eyewitnesses have said. The official announcement was made by the Ruet-i-Hilal Committee.

The Ruet-i-Hilal Committee conducted its meeting in Karachi, which is being chaired by Mufti Munib-ur-Rehman.

The meeting is also being attended by members of the Met Dept and Suparco.

Golden hours from far-offs in Pakistan

The sun sets on what was once a fort - now lush green fields. The stone rubble at this place near Topi is assumed to represent an old fort.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart once said, “A man of ordinary talent will always be ordinary, whether he travels or not; but a man of superior talent will go to pieces if he remains forever in the same place.” Travelling is not to enjoy picturesque landscapes but to learn from people, discover new places and cherish unique cultural colours. This is a set of photos from remote areas in Pakistan, while the sun was on the edges. – Text and photos by Raheel Adnan

Sunset colors cannot get any better than this. Photographed on a freezing evening, in a remote village of Mansehra.

The layered fields of Batagram are ready to witness another winter day.

Few moments before a spring sunrise, this photo was taken in Murree. A four lane Islamabad-Murree Expressway offers a calm and comfortable drive through this mountainous region.

Thakot bridge over River Indus is the junction between Hazara and Kohistan districts. The sea green Indus and golden sunset amalgamate to create a wizardly environment in these rigid mountains

Evening clouds are reflected in a perfect mirror of Tarbela Lake.

Every summer, the efforts of the Pakistan army restore a treacherous 55km muddy jeep track between Upper Neelum and Kaghan valleys. Today’s sun glances for a last time on the Neelum-Kaghan track near Noori Pass.

Somewhere in the mountains around Muzaffarabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The ending of another day for the courageous people of Dasu, the district capital of Kohistan.

The dancing clouds of a blue hour are captured in Naran Valley

Karachi Violence toll rises to 27: police

KARACHI: At least 16 people have died over the past 24 hours as renewed violence involving rival ethnic and sectarian groups continued to rock the Pakistani city of Karachi, police said Monday.

The latest killings bring the toll to 27 since the fresh wave erupted on Friday, intensifying a surge of violence blamed on political, ethnic and criminal rivalries which has left scores dead so far this month.

Pakistan last week deployed hundreds of additional police and paramilitary troops onto the streets of the country’s largest city to try to quell the unrest.

The violence in Karachi has been blamed on supporters of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), based among the Urdu-speaking majority, and the rival Awami National Party (ANP), which represents ethnic Pashtun migrants.

Sporadic gunfire echoed around the port city’s eastern districts of Malir, Khokhrapar and Landhi overnight, residents said. Most of the criminal gangs are believed to be hiding in the impoverished neighbourhoods.

“At least 16 people have died over the past 24 hours, they were victims of ethnic and sectarian violence,” city police chief Saud Mirza told AFP.

“We have rushed additional police force to the troubled areas and the situation has improved.

One senior police officer said that two mortar shells were fired in the clashes between rival activists.

The MQM last month quit the coalitions led by the main ruling Pakistan People’s Party that govern the country and the southern province of Sindh, of which Karachi is the capital. The ANP remains part of both coalitions.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says 490 people were killed in targeted killings in Karachi in the first half of the year, compared to 748 in 2010.

Four days of unrest killed 95 people before troops took back areas of Karachi held by armed gangs on July 9.

All Around Pakistan

A Pakistani ice cream vendor waits for clients at Sea View beach in Karachi.

A Pakistani butcher talks with a customer at a meat market in Karachi.

Pakistani customers inspect fabrics at a shopping mall in Karachi.

Devotees perform “dhamal” a devotional dance involving a frenzied and ecstatic swirl of the head and body, which is a special ritual that is performed at the rhythmic beat of traditional drums, during an anniversary of famous saint Lal Shahbaz Qalander at his shrine in Sewan Sharif, 250 kilometers (155 miles) from Hyderabad.

Children who live along a railway track prepare to fly a kite in Karachi.

A Pakistani gold scavenger searches through dirt for gold at a gold market of Peshawar

In this photo taken on July 18, 2011, a Pakistani craftsman gives final touches to a brand new truck which is being traditionally decorated before it hits the road in Rawalpindi.

Eight killed In Muzaffargarh Road Accident

MUZAFFARGARH: Eight passengers were killed and 30 others were injured when an over-speeding bus overturned in Muzaffargarh on Saturday.

Reportedly, the bus was heading towards Karachi from Rawalpindi when it overturned near the Hityan bus-stop in Shehr Sultan due to over-speeding.

As a result, eight people died on the spot.

Thirty people received injuries and were shifted to hospitals in Muzaffargarh, Multan and Bahawalpur.

Norway reels from twin terror attacks

OSLO: A bomb ripped through Oslo’s central government district on Friday and a gunman dressed as a policeman then opened fire at a youth camp on a nearby island, killing 17 people altogether, police said.

In the biggest such attack in western Europe since the London transport bombings in 2005, seven died when the bomb exploded in the Norwegian capital, scattering glass, shattered masonry and twisted steel across the streets.

Shortly afterwards, a gunman opened fire at the youth camp of the ruling political party on Utoeya island, north-west of Oslo.

Police said nine or 10 people were killed and they believed the two attacks were linked. The gunman was arrested.

The bomb, which shook the city centre at around 3:30pm (1330 GMT), blew out the windows of the Prime Minister’s building and damaged the finance and oil ministries.

“People ran in panic,” said bystander Kjersti Vedun.

With police advising people to evacuate central Oslo, apparently in fear of more attacks, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told Norwegian TV2 television in a phone call that the situation was “very serious”. He said that police had told him not to say where he was speaking from.

A Reuters witness saw soldiers taking up positions in Oslo.

The gunman, described by a police official as tall and blond, was reported by Norwegian media to have taken advantage of the
confusion caused by the bombing to attack the summer camp of Stoltenberg’s Labour party youth section.

“There was a lot of shooting … We hid under a bed. It was very terrifying,” a young woman at the camp told British Sky television.

There was no clear claim of responsibility.

“This is a terror attack. It is the most violent event to strike Norway since World War Two,” said Geir Bekkevold, an opposition parliamentarian for the Christian Peoples Party.

Lilit Gevorgyan, analyst at IHS Global Insight, said the most likely suspects were Al Qaeda-linked or inspired groups, but added:

“As the news continues trickling in from Utoeya, however, right-wing extremist groups or even a lone perpetrator with army training or access to ammunition and weaponry could be behind the plot.”

Deputy Oslo police chief Sveining Sponheim told reporters that the gunman in the Utoeya shootings had been disguised in a blue police-style uniform but had never been employed by the police.

He said that the police also believed that the man may have been involved in both the Oslo bombing and the shootings. So far, the detained man had not said anything to the police.

Nato member Norway has been the target of threats before over its involvement in conflicts in Afghanistan and Libya.

The attack came just over a year after three men were arrested on suspicion of having links to Al Qaeda and planning to attack targets in Norway. It also came less than three months after US forces killed Osama bin Laden in a raid on his hideout in Pakistan.    Violence or the threat of it has already come to the other Nordic states: a botched bomb attack took place in the Swedish capital Stockholm last December and the bomber was killed.

Denmark has received repeated threats after a newspaper published sketches of the holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in late 2005, angering Muslims worldwide.

Police have been on the alert for complex gun-and-bomb attacks on European cities since the assault by 10 gunmen on India’s financial capital Mumbai in November 2008 which killed 166 people. The Oslo attacks, though hitting two targets, were not simultaneous and the delay between them left open the possibility of a single perpetrator.

Madrid suffered a militant bomb attack on commuter trains in 2004 that killed 191 people. Four suicide bombers killed 52 people in an attack on London’s transport system in 2005.

The Oslo district attacked is the very heart of power in Norway, with several other key administration buildings nearby.

Nevertheless, security is not tight given the lack of violence in the past.

The Reuters correspondent said the streets had been fairly quiet in mid-afternoon on a Friday in high summer, when many Oslo residents take vacation or leave for weekend breaks.—Reuters

President Summons Mirza To Islamabad

ISLAMABD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday summoned Senior Minister of Sindh Dr. Zulfikar Mirza to the President House for his statement given last night after which Karachi plunged into violence.

According to Presidential Spokesman Farhatullah Babar, the provincial minister is summoned for his controversial statement regarding the MQM chief Altaf Hussain and Urdu speaking community.

Babar said that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has already disowned the statement and appealed to the protestors to remain calm.

Zulfikar Mirza Apologises For Comments

KARACHI: Sindh Senior Minister for Works and Services, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza has said that his remarks at a reception here on Wednesday night were not intended to harm the sentiments of any community.

According to a statement issued here on Thursday by his spokesperson, Mr Mirza said that he issued the comments in his personal capacity and offered his apologies in this regard.

Mr Mirza said that all the Urdu-speaking people would remain their brothers.

“After partition we welcomed our Urdu-speaking brothers in the province and we would continue to live like brothers in future as well,” he maintained.

It is the endeavour of our leadership that we should maintain unity and live peacefully as a family and thwart all conspiracies of the enemies working against integrity of the country, he said.

World Voices Horror Over New Mumbai Attacks

The coordinated explosions hit busy shopping and residential districts across the city, which is still emerging from the shadows of the 2008 militant attack that left 166 people dead.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the attacks “despicable” and vowed to visit India next week as planned, while Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi said the violence had shocked “civilised people everywhere”.

“I believe it is more important than ever that we stand with India, deepen our partnership, and reaffirm our commitment to the shared struggle against terrorism,” said Clinton, whose trip follows President Barack Obama’s state visit in November.

No group has claimed responsibility for the explosions which hit at rush hour on Wednesday.

But suspicions initially fell on the home-grown Indian Mujahideen and Lashkar-i-Taiba (LT), both militant groups that have targeted India in the past.

The president and prime minister of Pakistan were among the first world leaders to condemn the blasts, voicing “distress on the loss of lives and injuries”.

The UN Security Council “reaffirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security”.

Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram, who arrived at the scene within hours along with forensic experts and anti-terror commandos from New Delhi, told reporters the bombings were part of “a coordinated attack by terrorists”.

The most powerful devices exploded at a wholesale gold market and a district housing diamond traders and jewellery shops in southern Mumbai, while a third blast occurred in a middle-class area to the north.

“It is another attack on the heart of India,” said the chief minister of Maharashtra state, Prithviraj Chavan, who described it as a “challenge to Indian sovereignty”.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, led a chorus of condemnation from Asia Pacific nations which have also suffered from terrorism, including Australia and Sri Lanka, which ended 37 years of ethnic conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels in 2009.

“Indonesia…expresses its full sympathy and condolences to the government and people of India for the loss of lives and the injuries caused as a result of that heinous and cowardly act,” Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said.

Australia, which lost 88 citizens in the 2002 Bali bombings, said such “wanton acts of terrorism” had no place in the civilised world.

China pledged to work with its southern neighbour to combat terrorism, with foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei saying the country was “shocked by the heavy casualties and losses caused by the blasts”.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton denounced the bombings as “heinous” while Britain and France reaffirmed their support for India in the fight against terrorism.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered “our deep and profound sympathy and condolences to the families and loved ones of those killed and injured by these heinous acts of violence, including Canadians who may have loved ones in Mumbai.” 

Rehman Malik Apologises For Zulfiqar Mirza’s Statement

ISLAMABAD: Recollecting the many sacrifices that the Urdu-speaking community had made during Pakistan’s formative years, Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Thursday apologised for senior provincial minister Zulfiqar Mirza’s statement televised earlier, DawnNews reported.

Speaking to media representatives in Islamabad, Malik said the Urdu-speaking community did not belong to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement only, but that members of the community also belonged to the Jamaat-i-Islaami, the Pakistan People’s Party and other political parties.

Moreover, he said it was one of slain leader Benazir Bhutto’s decisions and directions for the PPP to work alongside the MQM and pursue political reconciliation with them.

He added that the MQM was a national party, and that he deeply respected MQM chief Altaf Hussain. 

Mirza And Syed Should Leave Karachi In 48 hours: MRC

KARACHI: The Mohajir Rabita Council (MRC) on Thursday said PPP leader Zulfikar Mirza and ANP leader Shahi Syed should leave Karachi in the next 48 hours, DawnNews reported.

The MRC also rejected the apology offered by Mr Mirza for his remarks on Urdu-speaking people and Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain.

The MRC moreover said that it would continue its protests until Mr Mirza and Mr Syed leave the city. 

Mumbai Burns And Weeps

A milk man walks past passers-by and media persons standing in rain at Zaveri bazar, one of three sites of explosions. - AP Photo

At least 21 people were killed and nearly 150 injured by a series of blasts in busy localities of Mumbai on Wednesday evening.

Policemen stand at the blast site at Opera House. - AFP photo

An Indian police officer inspects the debris at the Opera House. - AP Photo

A policeman walks past a television journalist reporting from the site of an explosion near the Dadar area. – Reuters photo

A policeman walks past a television journalist reporting from the site of an explosion near the Dadar area. – Reuters photo

Friends and family members console Vipul Soni (C) younger brother of blast victim Pankaj Soni, as they perform his last rites inside a crematorium in. - AFP photo

A bomb squad member collects evidence at the site of an explosion at Dadar. - AP photo

The first blast occurred in Zaveri Bazaar, the heart of Mumbai’s jewellery trade, at 6.50pm, followed soon after by one at Dadar, about 10km to the north. This was followed by a third explosion at Opera House, also in south Mumbai, about 10 minutes later. All three are congested areas, with tens of thousands of traders, office-goers and commuters leaving for home.

People carry a victim of a bomb explosion at Dadar in Mumbai. - AP photo

Indian police cordon off the area of a bomb blast site in Dadar Kabutarkhana area. - AFP photo

Arup Patnaik, Mumbai’s police commissioner, said the terrorists had used improvised explosive devices to trigger off the blasts.

Indian bystanders gather around a damaged vehicle at a bomb blast site in the Dadar District. - AFP photo

 

After the blasts, a red alert was issued in Mumbai, even as the police blocked roads and exits to the city. Blood-covered bodies lay on Mumbai streets and people hugged and wept. Others carried the wounded to taxis. Crowds gathered in the blast areas as police questioned witnesses and bomb squads inspected the undercarriages of vehicles searching for clues and other explosives. Motorcycles were charred, shop-fronts shattered and a bus stop ripped apart. Bleeding victims crowded into the back of a cargo truck to be taken to a hospital.