Suicide bombers attack court compound in Pakistan’s Peshawar

PESHAWAR, Pakistan,  (Reuters) – Two suicide bombers attacked a judicial compound in the Pakistani city of Peshawar today, killing four people and taking hostages, officials said.

Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar said one bomber blew himself up outside the complex, causing the deaths, while the other entered the complex in an apparent bid to storm into a jail and release militants held there.

He took hostages and was later shot dead by security forces, Iftikhar said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the operation. Police forces sealed off roads around the complex.

Taliban militants, who are close to al Qaeda, are fighting to topple Pakistan’s U.S.-backed government and impose their radical version of Islam.

They have targeted the military, security forces and civilians.