POLICE TARGETED IN ISB ATTACK
A suicide bomber has struck a police station in the Pakistani capital, killing a police officer.
At least two policemen were in a critical condition following Monday's attack on a station that houses police intelligence and bomb dispoal units in Islamabad.
Witnesses said body parts were strewn across the ground and that the blast could be heard across much of the city centre.
The attack came amid scaled down ceremonies to mark the country's Republic Day.
Police said the attacker tried to enter the Special Branch office and, when guards tried to stop him, he blew himself up.
Police moved quickly to cordon off the area which is near the central Sitara market.
Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr, reporting from the scene, said it was still too early to say who was responsible.
She said Pakistanis were expressing their dismay at the inability of security forces to prevent such attacks.
"Islamabad has not been spared in the recent wave of violence across Pakistan, and there have been special security measures all across Islamabad," Khodr reported.
Pakistan was marking Republic Day on Monday, although celebrations and the traditional military parades had been called off due to security concerns.
Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
