Islamabad: Pakistan witnessed a ten-fold increase in suicide bombings on security personnel in 2007 as compared to the previous year, with hundreds of personnel losing their lives in the attacks.

The country saw 56 suicide attacks in 2007 that resulted in the death of 419 law enforcement personnel and injured 217 civilians. In the previous year, only six such incidents were reported in which 46 law enforcement personnel and 91 civilians were killed.

The past year also witnessed a 100 per cent increase in attacks on law enforcement personnel, the Daily Times quoted a report of the interior ministry as saying.

The report focussed on attacks on security personnel. The total number of suicide attacks in 2007,including those on civilians, was nearly 70. In 465 attacks on security personnel across Pakistan, 234 personnel and 262 civilians were killed.

In comparison, 224 attacks targeted law enforcement personnel in 2006, resulting in the death of 82 personnel and 159 civilians. The year 2007 also witnessed over 100 per cent increase in bomb blasts, with 42 security personnel and 164 civilians losing their lives in 477 blasts.

This was in comparison to the killing of nine security personnel and 110 civilians in 2006. The past year also topped in total causalities -- 2,116 people, including 558 security personnel, were killed and 3,962 injured in 1,825 attacks.

This was in comparison to 1,482 attacks in 2006 in which 967 people, including 263 security personnel, were killed and 1,895 injured. The past year saw a decrease in three different categories of terrorism, missile or rocket attacks, improvised explosive device explosions and mine blasts.

Only 417 incidents of missile or rocket attacks occurred in 2007, as compared to 528 incidents in 2006.

Source : PTI