At least 23 people were killed and 150 injured in a suspected Taliban suicide car bomb attack on Thursday at a security compound in Pakistan's largest city Karachi where militants are held, officials said. The attack took place at the compound of the police Crime Investigation Department, meters from the provincial chief minister's house in a central district known as the "red zone" because of its high security status. Azam Tariq, a spokesman for the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack which he said was in retaliation for U.S. air strikes in the country's northwestern tribal areas. "It's a reaction to the drone strikes and such attacks will continue until drone strikes are stopped," he told. The building is used to hold and interrogate a number of militants, including those from banned organizations. It was not immediately clear how many were inside at the time of the attack. Sharmila Farooqi, a spokeswoman for the government of Sindh province where Karachi is the capital, said at least 23 people were killed and 150 injured. "The attackers first opened fire and then rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the building," senior police official Javed Akbar Riaz told. "We suspect that it was a suicide attack." The blast left a crater about 40 feet across and 12 feet (four meters) deep in front on the building. The building was gutted and some parts of nearby buildings collapsed.
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