Guest OctoberBlood Report post Posted March 15, 2004 ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Police in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi say they have defused a large bomb found in a stolen minivan parked outside the U.S. Consulate. "We saved this place from big destruction," Karachi police official Mohammed Irfan said, according to The Associated Press. Two men left the vehicle parked next to the consulate perimeter wall Monday morning, and when questioned by police said it had broken down, promising to return to fix it. Police then found a water tank in the van filled with liquid explosives, which was hooked up to a timer and detonator. Bomb disposal experts were called in and deactivated the device. Reports indicated the tank contained 200 gallons (750 liters) of explosives -- enough to cause significant damage. The van was stolen Sunday in a carjacking that left the owner hospitalized with a bullet in his leg, a police investigator told CNN. Security is high at the consulate, which has been targeted before. Police haven't said anything specific about who was behind the foiled attack, but are trying to pull together composite sketches of possible suspects. Islamic militants were blamed for a suicide truck bombing in June 2002 in front of the U.S. Consulate in Karachi, which killed at least 12 Pakistanis. In February 2002, gunmen killed two police officers outside the consulate, wounding five other officers and a civilian. Monday's incident comes days ahead of a visit from U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell is set to visit the capital, Islamabad, on Wednesday but will not visit Karachi. He is also set to take in India and Afghanistan. Wow. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
