January 25, 2002	Friday	Ziqa’ad 10, 1422

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 24: A small time device exploded in a British staff van in the parking area of the British High Commission on Thursday but no one was injured, police and witnesses said.

The explosion which created panic among the High Commission staff, occurred around 11.50am in the van (X-08-05) parked at the parking lot. The vehicle was empty at the time of the blast.

The explosion left a hole of 10cm diameter in the vehicle. Army bomb disposal experts arrived at the scene and cordoned off the entire area. They collected the left over pieces of the bomb and also used sniffer dogs.

Senior Superintendent of Islamabad police said it was a small time device, fixed underneath the van.

The SSP said that the RDX material had been used in the device weighing not more than four ounces.

The SSP asserted that it was not a security lapse, saying there was a possibility that somebody in Rawalpindi might have fixed the device because the van picked the staff from different areas of Rawalpindi and also made stopovers there.

He said van driver Mohammad Yousuf was being questioned but he had not been taken into custody so far. The SSP said that no one had claimed responsibility for the blast. A four-member investigating team led by SP Sultan Ahmed Tamuri has been constituted to investigate the blast.

JACK STRAW: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in a statement in London he was awaiting the result of an investigation into the blast, Reuter adds.

“I welcome the rapid reaction of the Pakistani authorities, and look forward to the results of their investigation,” he said.