Washington Post | By Karin Brulliard | 3 February 2010
U.S. says 3 military personnel killed in Pakistan bombing

The U.S. troops were in Pakistan to train the Pakistani paramilitary forces that patrol the nation’s militant-plagued border with Afghanistan, according to a U.S. embassy statement. They were attending the inauguration of a girls’ school at the time of the blast, which also killed at least one member of Pakistan’s Frontier Corps and wounded dozens, including schoolchildren.

While fatal bombings of American military personnel have become more frequent in neighboring Afghanistan, Wednesday’s attack appeared to be the first such incident in Pakistan, where troops are not engaged directly in combat missions.

Details about the attack remained unclear Wednesday afternoon. Pakistani military officials attributed the blast to a roadside bomb. One Pakistani military official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Americans killed were Marines.

The bombing took place in Lower Dir, a district squeezed between Afghanistan and the Swat Valley, which Pakistan’s military wrested back from Taliban control last year. Insurgent attacks have continued intermittently in the region, which is still patrolled by the military.

U.S. officials in Pakistan could not be reached for comment. Though Pakistan does not allow U.S. troops to perform combat operations on its soil, its military quietly participates in counter-terrorism training conducted mostly by U.S. Army Special Forces.

Pakistan has witnessed a surge in anti-Americanism in recent months. The paramilitary training program — implemented with little publicity — has sparked occasional rumors that U.S. soldiers are carrying out clandestine raids against militants who have sought haven in Pakistan’s borderlands. U.S. military officials, who refer to the program as “train-the-trainer,” deny those accounts and say their troops are conducting the training at the invitation of Pakistan.

“The carnage at the school in Lower Dir clearly shows the terrorists’ vision,” the U.S. embassy statement said. “The United States and Pakistan are partners in fighting terrorism — and our people are working together to build schools.”

Special Correspondents Haq Nawaz Khan in Peshawar and Shaiq Hussain in Islamabad contributed to this report.

Source: Washington Post

See Also:

• Bomb blast near Pakistani girls’ school kills three US soldiers (Times 3 Feb 2010)
• Taliban kill 3 US soldiers in Pakistan roadside bomb attack (CSM 3 Feb 2010)
• Blast hits Pakistan school opening (Aljazeera 3 Feb 2010)