Death Toll From Suicide Bombing In Pakistan Rises To 54 - Reports

Fahad Shabbir (@FahadShabbir) Published July 31, 2023 | 04:30 PM

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st July, 2023) The death toll from a bombing attack that rocked a political party rally in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has climbed to 54 after more victims died from their wounds on Monday, media reported, citing police.

Earlier reports put the death toll at 46. A total of 83 people are receiving treatment at hospitals, the Geo tv broadcaster reported, citing Additional Inspector General of the Counter-Terrorism Department Shokat Abbas.

The explosion occurred on Sunday at around 4:00 p.m. local time (11:00 GMT) at a gathering of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) party in the town of Khar, located near the Afghan border, in Pakistan's northwestern Bajaur district.

The blast killed around 40 people on the spot, leaving more than 100 injured.

Police qualified the deadly blast as a terrorist attack, saying that Islamic State (terrorist group banned in Russia) was responsible for it.

JUI-F leader Fazlur Rehman demanded that Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif and regional caretaker Chief Minister Azam Khan investigate the incident. The party is one of the main allies of the prime minister's coalition government, which is preparing to participate in national elections, scheduled for November.