Toddler among 10 civilians killed in Pakistan bombing

14th September 2015 By: Shannon de Ryhove - Contributing Editor

A bomb blast ripped through crowds outside a bus terminal in central Pakistan, killing 10 civilians and two bombers, officials said on Monday.

A toddler and two women were among the dead in the overnight bombing in the central city of Multan in Punjab province, police official Azhar Akram said. Over 50 people were wounded.

Two teenage suicide bombers were apparently on a motorbike when it collided with a rickshaw and their explosives went off, Akram said.

"They might have been planning to target some other place but exploded prematurely," he said.

The bombing comes after several months of relative calm in Pakistani cities, where deadly bombings by militants linked with al-Qaeda and its allied Taliban have become very rare.

Attacks on civilians and the military have declined significantly, seen as a result of a year-long military offensive and what officials call intelligence-based operations in urban areas.

Just hours before the bombing in Multan, military jets pounded the hideouts of suspected Islamists militants in the north-western tribal region, killing 17 rebels, officials said.

DPA/News24.com