- The attack took place on Sunday when more than 400 members of the conservative Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) party had gathered for a meeting.
- District Police Officer Nazir Khan said three suspects have been taken into custody.
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has strongly condemned the blast and vowed that those responsible will be identified and punished.
- Former prime minister Imran Khan said he was saddened to learn about the blast and extended condolences to the victims’ families.
- Pakistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan.
Police in Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province said that an initial probe has suggested that the banned terrorist group ISIS is behind the suicide attack on a political convention of an Islamist party that killed at least 44 people and injured over 100. Rescuers have warned the death toll may rise further, as 15 people are in critical condition.
The attack took place on Sunday when more than 400 members of the conservative Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) party, known for its links to hardline political Islam, had gathered for a meeting under a canopy in the town of Khar, which borders Afghanistan.
The police said they were gathering details of the suicide bomber, while the bomb disposal squad team was collecting evidence from the site.
District Police Officer said three suspects have been taken into custody. Provincial police chief Akhtar Hayat Khan said 10 kilograms of explosives set off by a suicide bomber were used in the blast. He said the bomber was among the attendees seated in the front rows of the convention.
According to police and witnesses, the blast occurred as soon as JUI-F District Amir Maulana Abdul Rasheed reached the stage. The deceased included JUI-F Tehsil Khar Maulana Ziaullah Jan, Navagai Tehsil General Secretary Maulana Hameedullah, District Information Secretary Mujahid Khan, and dozens of party workers.
An emergency has been declared in the hospitals of Bajaur and adjoining areas where most of the injured were taken. The critically injured have been transported from Bajaur to hospitals in the provincial capital Peshawar by military helicopters.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has strongly condemned the blast and vowed that those responsible will be identified and punished. Sharif spoke to JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to express his condolences. He ordered an investigation into the incident.
Former prime minister Imran Khan said he was saddened to learn about the blast and extended condolences to the victims’ families.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in August 2021. On January 30, a Pakistan Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up during the afternoon prayers in a mosque in Peshawar, killing 101 people and injuring more than 200 others.
In February, heavily-armed TTP militants stormed the Karachi Police chief’s office in Pakistan’s most populous city, sparking gunfire that killed three rebels and four others, including two police constables.
(With inputs from agencies)
