Pakistani PM's motorcade attacked

Taliban gunmen fired shots at Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani's motorcade near Islamabad's airport yesterday, but officials and police said he was not in it at the time.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack days ahead of a presidential election, which is bound to compound the fears of investors and allies, who worry about chronic political instability and Islamist violence in the nuclear-armed country.

Senior police official Rao Mohammad Iqbal said the motorcade was heading to the airport to pick up Mr Gilani when it was attacked. "The car was going towards the airport when it was fired upon from a small hill... two bullets hit the driver's window," Mr Iqbal said.

Earlier, the Prime Minister's spokesman, Zahid Bashir, said shots were fired at Mr Gilani's motorcade but he was not hurt.

The Prime Minister's office said multiple sniper shots had been fired and television pictures showed two bullet marks a couple of inches apart on the cracked bullet-proof window.

Mr Gilani is a senior member of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's party. She was killed in a suicide gun and bomb attack on December 27 while campaigning for a general election. The government said al Qaeda-linked militants killed her. Mrs Bhutto's party went on to win the February 18 election and Mr Gilani became Prime Minister of a coalition government.

A Pakistani Taliban spokesman said Mr Gilani was attacked because he was responsible for offensives against militants in the northwest.