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Ace Press News From Cutting Room Floor: Published: Jul: 31: 2023:
AceBreakingNews - A powerful bomb has ripped through a rally of supporters for a hard-line cleric and political leader in Pakistan's north-western Bajur district that borders Afghanistan, police and health officials said
At least 40 people were killed and nearly 200 were injured, police said.
Provincial Chief Akhtar Hayat Gandapur said an initial investigation suggested a suicide bomber sneaked into the venue despite the security provided by party volunteers.
He said explosives experts were combing the scene to preserve evidence.
Senior police officer Nazir Khan said the workers' convention of Maulana Fazlur Rehman's Jamiat Ulema Islam party was being held on the outskirts of Khar, the capital of Bajur district, when the explosion happened.
One of the victims, Adam Khan, 45, was hit by splinters in his leg and both hands.
Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 40 people had been "martyred" and nearly 200 injured in the bombing.
"There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs," he said: The bombing was one of the worst attacks in north-west Pakistan. (AP: Muhammad Sajjad)
District health officer Dr Faisal Khan said 40 bodies from the blast were at Khar's main hospital.
Some of the wounded were in critical condition and were being transferred to a facility in Peshawar and the adjoining district of Dir.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families.
No-one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but the Islamic State group operates across the border in Afghanistan.
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Mr Rehman's party, was among the dead.
Senator Abdur Rasheed and former politician Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt. Party officials said Mr Rehman was not at the rally.The explosion happened during a political rally in the country's north-western Bajur district. (AP: Rescue 1122 Head Quarters )
Mr Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove the party from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work.
"Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones," Mr Rasheed said.
Mr Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. It is not known whether Mr Rehman was present.
Meetings are being organised across the country to mobilise supporters for the coming elections.
Bajur, once a tribal region but now a district, has been a safe haven for Islamic militants until recent years, when Pakistani military carried out massive operations to eliminate militancy from the area.
It is the former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, a militant group that is a close ally of the Taliban government of Afghanistan.
In a statement sent to The Associated Press, the TTP condemned the bombing, saying it was aimed at pitching Islamists against each other.
"There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs," he said: The bombing was one of the worst attacks in north-west Pakistan. (AP: Muhammad Sajjad)
AP NEWS AGENCY & REUTERS NEWS AGENCY
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