At least 35 killed in blast at political party’s meeting in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province

PTI, Jul 30, 2023, 6:43 PM IST

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Peshawar:  At least 35 people were killed and over 80 others injured on Sunday when a powerful bomb exploded at a hardline Islamic political party’s meeting in a restive tribal district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.

The explosion took place at the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) workers’ convention in Khar, the capital of Bajaur tribal district.

At least 35 people were killed and over 80 injured in the blast, police and heath officials said.

The JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman demanded Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the province’s caretaker Chief Minister Azam Khan to investigate the incident.

He also urged the party workers to reach the hospital and donate blood.

“JUI workers should remain peaceful and federal and provincial governments should provide the best treatment to the injured,” said Fazl.

Chief Minister Khan condemned the blast and sought a report from the district administration.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Haji Ghulam Ali, who is also a central member of JUIF, confirmed the death toll.

Police said that the injured have been shifted to a nearby hospital.

The condition of the majority of the injured people was stated to be critical. The nature of the blast is being determined. However, the initial report suggests it was a suicide blast.

Law enforcement agencies have cordoned off the area.

Rescue 1122 spokesperson Bilal Faizi told the Dawn newspaper that five ambulances had reached the site.

Speaking on Geo News, JUI-F leader Hafiz Hamdullah said he was supposed to attend the convention today but could not because of some personal commitments.

“I strongly condemn the blast and want to give a message to the people behind it that this is not jihad but terrorism,” the JUI-F leader said, adding that it was an attack on humanity and Bajaur.

He demanded that the blast should be probed, recalling that this was not the first that the JUI-F had been targetted.

“This has happened before…our workers have been targetted. We raised our voice over this in the Parliament but no action was taken.”

Hamdullah also extended his condolences to grieving families and urged the provincial government to provide the best medical facilities to the injured.