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 Pakistani police on Monday said they had recovered a "huge" cache
of weapons and explosives near the border, where thousands of
Indians and Pakistanis gather at dusk every day to watch a
flamboyant ritual parade by their security forces.
Pakistani police spokeswoman Nabeela Ghazanfar said the latest death
toll was 57 after the bomber detonated explosives in a car park 500
meters (yards) from the border gates and parade ground, just as
hundreds of spectators were returning from the ceremony.
Pakistani and Indian agents, who are arch-rivals and do not share
intelligence, gave conflicting accounts of whether the bomber's true
intention was to cause casualties on the Indian side of the border
and stir up tensions between the nuclear-armed nations.
"It appears the bomber wanted to target ground zero where Pakistan
and India border officials stand together to perform the flag
ceremony but he could not enter due to tight security on the last
gate," a Pakistani intelligence official told Reuters.
"Had he managed to reach the place, there would have been the worst
scenario at both sides."
If successful, such an attack would likely have severely tested ties
between India and Pakistan, already frayed after weeks of shelling
further along the border killed 17 people in October.
Another source said a second suicide vest had been found in a field
near the explosion site, suggesting there might have been another
bomber.
"The target - the border facility that symbolizes trade and
interaction between India and Pakistan - is a tempting one for
extremist Pakistani groups that want conflict with India and oppose
any detente or cooperation with New Delhi," said Bruce Riedel of the
Brookings Institution, a former adviser on South Asia to U.S.
presidents.
The border remained open on Monday, but both sides suspended the
daily flag-lowering ceremony for the first time since they fought a
war in 1971, as a mark of respect for the dead, India's home
ministry said.
Under the new government of nationalist Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, India has stepped up its response to perceived aggression from
neighbors Pakistan and China, with which it has long-standing border
disputes.
Modi condemned Sunday's attack as a "dastardly act".
"My condolences to the families of the deceased. Prayers with the
injured," he said on Twitter.
India regularly alleges the involvement of Pakistani security
agencies in militant attacks on its soil, including the 2008 Mumbai
attacks in which 166 people were killed when Pakistani militants
went on a three-day rampage in India's financial capital.
The two countries have fought three wars since they were carved out
of British India in 1947. They fought a limited conflict in 1999 and
were again on the brink after a militant attack on India's
parliament led to troop build-ups in 2002.
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FORCES ON 'RED ALERT'
An official from India's foreign intelligence service, the Research
and Analysis Wing, said the blast at the border was squarely aimed
at Pakistan's security forces, a version in line with several
Pakistani Taliban splinter groups that claimed the attack as revenge
for an army offensive against militants near the Afghanistan border.
"It is reprisal attacks against the establishment there. It's been a
long time coming, ever since the TTP (the Pakistan Taliban) has been
under pressure," he said.
An Indian official said the home ministry received two intelligence
warnings in mid-October of possible attacks along the border or at
the nearby Golden Temple in the city of Amritsar, the most sacred
site for Sikhs.
"Based on these reports the BSF was ordered to upgrade security and
a red alert was also issued," said a senior home ministry official.
The official declined to be named because he was not authorized to
speak to media.
"Warnings from intelligence departments are a regular feature but
this time we had a clear input that the retreat and Golden Temple
could be prime targets. This message was conveyed to the local
police."
Jagdeep Singh, a superintendent of police in Amritsar who is
involved with security around the Wagah border, told Reuters he had
installed checkpoints at two spots 3 km (two miles) away from the
flag ceremony venue after the warnings in October.
Every day, thousands of Indians and Pakistanis flock to watch the
elaborate show where border security officials kick their feet high
and grimace in mock aggression in a peacock-like display of
patriotism. It is one of the only chances regular citizens from the
two countries get to observe each other.
(Additional reporting by Rupam Jain Nair, Frank Jack Daniel and
Sanjeev Miglani in NEW DELHI, and Maria Golovnina in ISLAMABAD;
Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by John Chalmers and Jeremy
Laurence)
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