Bomb Blast Kills 14 In Northwestern Pakistan

Bomb blast kills 14 in northwestern Pakistan < br />

2012-07-19 03:36:17 GMT+7 (ICT)

PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- A bomb blast tore through a minibus in northwestern Pakistan on early Wednesday, killing at least fourteen people and injuring one other person, police said. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility.

The attack occurred in the village of Sepoy in Orakzai district, which is one of Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, when the minibus ran over an improvised explosive device (IED) which had been planted on the road. The powerful explosion heavily damaged the vehicle.

Police said ten people died at the scene while five others were rushed to the nearby District Headquarters Hospital in Kohat, where all but one of them succumbed to their injuries, raising the total death toll to fourteen. Among the casualties was a 3-year-old girl, an 11-year-old boy, and two women.

A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they were targeted because they were Shi'ites.

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