MALEGAON BOMB BLASTS KILL DOZENS OF MUSLIMS
(9 September 2006)

A series of bomb blasts in the town of Malegaon in Maharashtra, India, killed 32 people and wounded dozens yesterday. The town of about 700,000 people was hit by near-simultaneous blasts during the Friday Islamic prayers when thousands has gathered to pray for their dead on Shab-e-Barat, which comes just before the holy month of Ramadan. One bomb exploded insider the mosque's courtyard, another outside its gate and a third in the nearby town square. Almost all of those killed or injured were Muslim worshippers.

Hours after the blast, Indian Home Minister Shivraj Patil said in New Delhi that the nature of the attack - on the day Muslims marked 'Shab-e-Barat' or the night of forgiveness or atonement - showed that it was the work of terrorists.

In the UK, Foreign Office Minister, Ian McCartney MP said:"I was deeply saddened to learn about the bombings, including one outside a mosque during Friday prayers which has killed at least 25 civilians.

"That the attack happened outside a mosque, a religious building, a place of sanctuary for peace and prayer makes this act of violence even more callous.

"We have passed on our sympathies to the Government and people of India and I reiterate my sincere condolences to the families and friends of those killed and injured. "

The blasts came days after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that intelligence agencies there had warned of more terrorist attacks across the country, possibly against economic and religious targets as well as on nuclear installations. In Malegaon, which lies about 300 kilometres Northeast of Mumbai, police have imposed a curfew following the blasts and are patrolling the streets to prevent religious riots.

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