RAWALPINDI, Nov 24: Two suicide bombers struck in the city during the morning rush, targeting military personnel and installations, killing at least 18 people and injuring 40 others.

Almost all of the victims were either military personnel or civilians working for an intelligence agency. The condition of some of the injured was critical and the toll might rise.

Most of the casualties occurred when a suspected bomber rammed his explosive-laden van into a bus packed with security personnel at the gate of an intelligence establishment’s compound, known as Hamza Camp (old Ojhri Camp), near Faizabad.

The other bomber blew himself up when security guards stopped him at a checkpoint on the outer ring of the General Headquarters (GHQ).

Inter-Services Public Relations Director-General Maj-Gen Waheed Arshad told reporters that the attacks were suicide bombings.

Both the blasts occurred before 8am, when there is brisk movement near the military institutions.

The sound of the explosions was heard up to several kilometres away from the sites of the attacks and sent a wave of panic and fear among people in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Windowpanes of nearby buildings were shattered. Body parts and blood were scattered all over the area.

The first explosion occurred at about 7.40am when the bomber rammed his vehicle into the centre of the crowded bus from the right side while overtaking it. At least 17 people were killed and 35 others injured.

A security official said: “The people inside the 72-seat bus were burnt beyond recognition and skeletons were lying on the seats.”

Shortly after the blasts, soldiers and police sealed the scene, forced bystanders to move away and pushed journalists away.

The security personnel also snatched cameras and cellphones from journalists, but returned them later.

No private rescue worker or ambulance was allowed to take the victims to hospitals.

Three of the injured -- Hassan Akhtar, Mohammad Razaq and Mohammad Ali -- were taken to the Rawalpindi General Hospital but later shifted to a military hospital.

A man who was working at a shop at Faizabad told Dawn that he heard a loud explosion and saw clouds of thick smoke and dust rising from the site of the blast. Later, armymen tried to extinguish the fire and one lane of the Murree Road leading to Islamabad was closed.

The second explosion took place when a suicide bomber smashed his car into a checkpoint near a GHQ gate as he was signalled to stop.

The bomber was blown into pieces, while five other people were injured. One of the injured soldiers was in critical condition.

“The car was torn apart. It seems that explosives had been placed around its engine,” a security official said.

A bomb disposal expert said five or six mortar shells and as many hand-grenades carried by bombers in their vehicles had been detonated.

He said fuses of mortar shells and pieces of grenades had been found a few metres away from the Murree Road.

The manner in which militants had targeted army personnel in sensitive security zones over the past months had made investigators look for a highly organised group which had access to both explosives and information about the movement of security personnel, sources said.