Source: Boston

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistani police yesterday set up a dragnet after a weekend bomb attack that killed a Turkish woman and wounded four FBI agents among several other people dining at a Italian restaurant in Islamabad.

Investigators do not believe the attack was aimed at the FBI agents, who were among five Americans injured in the attack.

The investigation was being carried out jointly with intelligence agencies, and a forensics report was awaited to determine whether the bomb was planted in the garden dining area or thrown over a wall.

The blast left a crater about a yard wide, and police were immediately able to rule out a suicide attack, which has become Islamist militants favored mode of attack since mid-2007.

Ashraf Shah, investigating officer, said about 2 pounds of explosives were used in the attack.

“We have made some detentions focusing on suspicious people, and people unable to account for their presence in Islamabad. . . . But, there has not been any arrest in the case,” Senior Superintendent Kaleem Imam said.

FBI spokesman Richard Kolko confirmed Sunday that the four agents were slightly injured.

Tom Casey, State Department spokesman, condemned the attack, saying the restaurant was “hardly a military target of any kind. It’s clearly designed to affect civilians.”

The restaurant was a well-known haunt for expatriates, notably diplomats, journalists, and aid agency officials. Asked if the FBI agents were targeted, he said, “I don’t believe the Pakistanis or anyone else has presented information that would indicate these specific individuals were targeted rather than the location they were at.”

Twelve people were wounded, though none suffered life-threatening injuries. In addition to the Americans, the victims included three Pakistanis, a US embassy staffer, and nationals from Britain, Canada, China, and Japan.

While Pakistan has reeled from a wave of violence, the Al Qaeda inspired militants had until now focused on Pakistani security forces and political leaders, while Westerners and other foreigners have been mostly spared. But foreigners have been attacked several times in Pakistan since the United States persuaded President Pervez Musharraf to join its global war on terrorism in 2001.

The last foreign diplomat to be killed in a militant attack was US diplomat David Foy, who died in a suicide car bomb attack outside the US consulate in Karachi in March 2006. The Karachi consulate had been targeted by bombers several times before.

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Tags: Bomb blast, FBI, Foreigners, Intelligency, Islamabad, Killings