On the night of Sept. 20, 2008, a dump truck laden with more than 1,000 pounds of explosives, mortar bombs and shrapnel rammed a gate outside the Islamabad Marriott hotel. Minutes later, after an ignition device initially failed to detonate, the truck exploded — setting the hotel on fire, injuring hundreds and killing 56 people.
Albert DiFederico, a civilian contractor for the U.S. State Department, was one of two Americans who died. The blast came hours after the newly elected Pakistani president gave a speech vowing to purge the country of terrorism.
