A gunman opened fire on the house of a newspaper columnist critical of Pakistans army and spy agencies in an attack the writer alleged on Tuesday was carried out by elements linked to the countrys powerful security establishment. Kamran Shafi recounted the attack and a death threat he received the following day in his weekly column in the respected Dawn newspaper. He and his family were not injured in the incident in Rawalpindi on Friday. The army spokesman declined to comment. Shafi,a former army major,is a prominent critic of the military and its influence over the countrys weak civilian leadership. The issue has been in the spotlight in recent weeks amid rising pressure on President Asif Ali Zardari from within the military. Shafi said a gunman fired six times at his house before collecting the bullet casings and fleeing. Shafi,his wife and daughter were in the house during the late night attack,but in a room below the one where the bullets entered. The day after the shooting,Shafi received a call from a woman who said what happened was a trailer and that the complete movie would be shown soon. One does not spit in the plate one eats from, she allegedly said. In his column,Shafi said he had filed a police complaint in which he alleged suspects linked to unidentified state security agencies were involved. He did not give any evidence to back up the allegation. In a telephone interview Tuesday,he said he would continue criticising the armys role in the affairs of the state. Teen bomber kills Pak lawmaker MINGORA: A TEENAGE suicide bomber killed an anti-Taliban provincial lawmaker in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday after walking into the officials house along with guests and blowing himself up. More than a dozen people were wounded in the attack in Swat valley,police said. The army,battling a Taliban insurgency,launched what it said was a successful offensive in Swat in late April that cleared most of the area,but it still faces pockets of resistance. The slain lawmaker,Shamsher Ali,was a member of the Awami National Party,part of a coalition that rules the North West Frontier Province. Police said two of his brothers were wounded in the attack,one critically. People were coming to exchange Eid greetings with him when the bomber blew himself up,his relative Farooq Khan said. Police said the bombers head was severed from his body and he appeared to be about 16 years old. Militants had destroyed another one of Alis homes earlier this year. REUTERS
