Hotel Bombing in Pakistan Re-Write

After following the New York Time's on-line version of what transpired during the hotel bombing in Pakistan, I have re written the story, using a compilation of the final facts as the story progressed over the period of three days. 

Death Count in Pakistan Hotel Bombing Rises to 53

Just a few hundred yards from the prime minister's house, where all the leaders of government had gathered during a dinner following the president's address to parliament, a bomb exploded at the entrance to the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad on Saturday evening.

The bomb originated from a large truck located by the entrance of the hotel.  The blast, which has been considered as one of the worst acts of terrorism in Pakistan's history, left a 40 feet wide crater, killing at least 53 people and wounding at least 266, as stated by the acting interior minister.

The hotel,  a favorite meeting place for both foreigners and well-connected Pakistanis, was quickly engulfed in flames following the attack.

Among the counted dead, were the Czech ambassador, two American citizens and a Vietnamese woman.  Eleven other foreigners were also injured.

The bast of the bomb, buried security guards under mounds of rubble, and left cars and trees charred and mangled across the street.  The blast also caused windows of buildings hundreds of yards away to shatter.

The bombing may have been timed for the day that the President Asif Ali Zardari made his first address to parliament since his election two weeks ago.  Mr. Zardari, whose wife, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, was assassinated in december by a suicide bomber, vowed in his speech to root out extremism and stop terrorists from utilizing Pakistani soil to attack other countries.

As reported by The Associated Press of Pakistan, both he and the prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, condemned the attack and repeated their determination to deal with terrorism with an iron hand.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but pakistani analysts say that the bombing may have been in retaliation for recent army operations that have reportedly killed scores of militants in the tribal area of Bajaur, near the border with Afghanistan, and the adjacent area of Swat.

The Islamabad Marriott has been attacked by militants at least twice i the past, including a suicide attack in January 2007 that killed a policeman.