A bomb explosion that occurred on Sunday at a political rally of a hardline Islamic party in northwest Pakistan resulted in at least 39 fatalities and numerous injuries.
The explosion was directed towards the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F political party, during a gathering of around 400 individuals comprising party members and supporters.
This event took place in the town of Khar, situated in close proximity to the Afghanistan border.
“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.
Social media images from the blast location showed dead lying around the area and volunteers carrying victims covered in blood to ambulances.
Although no one has taken responsibility for the attack, the local branch of the Islamic State (IS) organisation has recently attacked JUI-F.
Last year, IS claimed responsibility for brutal attacks against clerics connected to the party, which operates a vast network of mosques and madrassas in the country’s north and west.
