A suicide bomber struck outside the gates of a district court in Islamabad on Tuesday, detonating his explosives next to a police car and killing 12 people, Pakistan’s interior minister said, the latest in an uptick in violence across the country.
Witnesses described scenes of mayhem in the immediate aftermath of the explosion, which also wounded 27 people. The blast was heard for miles away and came at a busy time of day when the area outside the court is typically crowded with hundreds of visitors attending court hearings.
A breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar group, claimed responsibility for the attack. But shortly after, Sarbakaf Mohmand, a commander from the group, sent WhatsApp messages insisting they had not made any such claim.
Earlier reports by Pakistani state-run media and two security officials said a car bomb caused the explosion.
Without giving evidence, Naqvi alleged that the attack was “carried out by Indian-backed elements and Afghan Taliban proxies” linked to the Pakistani Taliban. Still, he said authorities are “looking into all aspects” of the explosion.
Air travelers could face more frustration as busy U.S. airports need to meet a higher Federal Aviation Administration target for reducing flights Tuesday after already canceling thousands to scale back demands on the nation’s aviation system during the government shutdown.
Absences and signs of stress among traffic controllers, who haven’t been paid in over a month, made it imperative to cut flights in the name of public safety, the FAA said, ordering domestic airlines last week to drop 4% of their flights at 40 major U.S. airports. After already canceling more than 7,900 since Friday, the goal for cutting flights rose to 6% on Tuesday and again to 10% on Friday.
Nearly 1,200 flights were canceled Tuesday, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks air travel disruptions. It was unclear exactly how many additional flights would need to be canceled for the day, but there are fewer flights scheduled on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Severe weather is adding to the cancellations at some airports.
ByHeart, which makes organic infant formula, recalled all of its products sold throughout the U.S. on Tuesday amid a growing outbreak of infant botulism.
At least 15 babies in 12 states have been sickened in the outbreak tied to ByHeart formula, state and federal health officials said. That’s an increase from 13 cases in 10 states reported Saturday.
No deaths have been reported in the outbreak, which began in mid-August.
ByHeart officials said parents and caregivers who have the formula in their homes “should immediately discontinue use and dispose of the product.”
Abby Madsen can be reached at mads3817@stthomas.edu.
