THIS is with reference to a report ‘Woman suicide bomber strikes at WFP centre; 45 killed’ (Dec 26).

A woman suicide bomber blew herself up near the distribution point of the World Food Programme in Khar. As a result, 43 people were killed and about 100 injured.

It was the first suicide bombing involving a woman in the history of Pakistan. The spokesman for Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, Azam Tariq, while claiming responsibility for the attack said further that they would carry out more attacks in the near future and their organisation had a large number of women suicide bombers who would be used in attacks.

The year 2010 has proven to be the bloodiest for the people of Pakistan since 2001 as the unending spate of lethal suicide bombings in almost every nook and corner of the country has killed 1,224 innocent people and injured 2,157 between Jan 1 and Dec 23, 2010.

But in none of these attacks women were used by terrorists as suicide bombers. But after seeing the successful results of using women as suicide bombers in different parts of the world during the last three decades, women are now considered a deadly weapon by the TTP.

Many of these women and girls must have been motivated to sacrifice their lives in the name of jihad and hence were also trained as suicide bombers. The recourse to women doesn’t happen suddenly, it starts when the battle escalates to all sectors of society and men fight and die. Then the widow or their family members seek vengeance, or want to give their life in the same cause.

If the trend of using women as suicide bombers picks up in Pakistan, it will pose a new challenge for the police and security forces because women, especially those wearing burqa or veiled by chaddar, will become a problem for them.

Use of women as suicide bombers may not be limited to the TTP, women can also be used by any other terrorist organisations operating anywhere in Pakistan. If ever, women suicide bombers are used by terrorists in Pakistan, they will prove deadliest.

S.M. ANWAR Karachi