Pakistani minister injured, driver killed in attack

Islamabad: Unknown gunmen opened fire on a government minister's vehicle in the Pakistani Capital Islamabad on Wednesday, injuring the official and killing his driver, witnesses said.

The Minister for religious affairs, Hamid Saeed Kazmi was a few hundred meters from his office in the centre of Islamabad city when a man fired several shots with an AK-47 rifle at his vehicle, said a vendor who witnessed the attack, Jamil Ahmad.

"After the firing, the gunman dumped his rifle along the street and fled on a motorbike," Ahmad added. "The driver died immediately. His brain was lying on the steering wheel."

The witness said the minister received bullet wounds to his legs and his guard was also injured.

Another witness, Waqarul Hassan, said he saw four attackers on two motorbikes. "They fired shots with a Kalashnikov and a pistol which they left before fleeing."

Kazmi was being operated on at a local hospital but his condition was stable.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but Kazmi is considered a moderate Muslim scholar who has repeatedly criticized the Taliban.