Terrorists trying to divide Pakistan: Minister

Islamabad, Mar 16: Pakistan Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar on Monday, March 16, described Sunday's church bombings in Lahore as tragic and said the extremist approach eyes a division of Pakistan.

He was briefing the National Assembly (NA) interior standing committee, Duniya TV reported.

Nisar said that while the war on terror was not easy at all when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz came to power with several bomb blasts occurring daily, the government has been successful in limiting the number of attacks.

He said attacks on mosques and churches depicted the wretched condition of banned outfits.

Pakistan is in a state of war for as many as 13 years now, he added.

The interior minister said that further steps were needed for complete eradication of militancy in the country.

Terrorists attack easy targets, said the minister.

Nisar urged the political parties of the country to think above and beyond politics to root out terrorism.

On Sunday, a Pakistani Taliban offshoot, Jamatul Ahrar, hit the Roman Catholic Church and the Christ Church in the Yohanabad area of Lahore, capital of Pakistan's Punjab province, which left at least 15 people dead and over 70 wounded.

IANS