On Sept. 29, Naveed Qureshi was sitting in his shoe store in Peshawar's historic Qissa Khawani market when it was shaken by a huge explosion outside. "All we could see was fire," he says. "And there were piles of bodies, and body parts, everywhere." A car bomb, packed with over 200 kg of explosives, phosphorus and artillery shells, had blown up, killing 43 and badly damaging a mosque. "In just one family," says a stunned Qureshi, "17 people were killed, only a few days before the son was to get married." The ancient Qissa Khawani Bazaar, or the Storyteller's Market, derives its name from a time centuries ago, when troubadours regaled itinerant traders and warriors here with tales of heroism and love. Much later, some of its denizens later crossed into India to become famous fablemakers in the world's largest film industry. In the narrow streets, speckled by what little sunlight falls between the old, densely packed buildings, are the former homes of Bollywood legends Dilip Kumar and Prithviraj Kapoor, patriarch of the famous acting clan. Now, shopkeepers sit on the empty streets, in the shade of the bazaar's elegant decrepitude, to sip tea and trade tales of anguish. Zafar Yab, another shoe-store owner, hasn't even surveyed the damage to his business yet. "I haven't had the time," he says. "Since Sunday's bombing, I've been doing the rounds at hospitals and graveyards. We forget about it, we forget and brace ourselves for the next one. That's how we cope." The atrocity at Qissa Khawani was the third major attack on Peshawar in a week, leading to the loss of nearly 150 lives and over twice as many wounded. On Sept. 22, two suicide bombers attacked the nearby All Saints Church, killing over 80 parishioners. On Sept. 27, a bus carrying government employees on its way to the city was bombed, killing 20. Then it was Qissa Khawani's turn — again. "It is the fifth time in recent years this market has been attacked," Yab says. "And there have been nearly(http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=world.time.com&blog=19871253&post=107005&subd=timeglobalspin&ref=&feed=1)
Source: Pakistan's Terror Capital: Inside Peshawar, a City Under Siege (http://world.time.com/2013/10/02/pakistans-terror-capital-inside-peshawar-a-city-under-siege/)