At least 39 people were killed and dozens more wounded Sunday by a bomb blast at a political gathering of a radical Islamic party in northwest Pakistan, officials said.
“I can confirm that in the hospital we have 39 dead bodies, with 123 wounded that includes 17 patients in a serious condition,” Riaz Anwar, the health minister for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, told AFP. Provincial governor Haji Ghulam Ali confirmed the death count to AFP.
“A senior leader from the party was due to address the ceremony, but before his arrival, a bomb explosion took place,” Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, the inspector general of police for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, told AFP.
He said the blast targeted the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) party hosting a convention in the town of Khar, near the border with Afghanistan, ahead of elections later this year.
Source - AFP
-Agencies
