Militants Attack Police Academy in Pakistan

Where: Lahore, Pakistan

March 30, 2009 : Less than a month after the terror attack on Sri Lankan cricketers, militants targeted a police training school in Manawan on the outskirts of Lahore. They killed eight police recruits and two civilians, and injured nearly 100 people.

At 7.30 a.m., around 850 unarmed recruits at the school had assembled for their morning parade. At least 10 armed militants jumped over the boundary walls and entered the grounds. They threw grenades at the assembly and fired indiscriminately. All the recruits who died fell in this first strike. The attackers were in their twenties, bearded and dressed in salwar-kameez. Some of them wore police uniforms.They all carried backpacks full of arms and ammunition. Within an hour of the attack, it became clear that the police could not control the situation, and the government called in the paramilitary Pakistan Rangers and the Army. Three of the attackers blew themselves up to avoid being captured. Only one man was arrested.

Beithullah Mehsud, a Taliban militant commander, has claimed responsibility for the attack. He said the attack was in retaliation to air strikes by the United States in Pakistan’s South Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan. He warned there would be more attacks until Pakistan ended support to the U.S.

Related Links – If you want to know more about Pakistan:
Pakistan: Where is it? Click here to see it on the map
Pakistan: Country profile
Pakistan: Latest news about Pakistan
Pakistan: Images from Pakistan

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Readability: Grade 7 (12-13 year old children)
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Filed under: world news
Tags: #pakistan, #militants, #lahore

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