An explosion at a political rally on Sunday in northwest Pakistan killed at least 35 people and injured 200 more, officials said, the latest sign of the deteriorating security situation in Pakistan, where some militant groups have become more active over the past two years since finding a haven in neighboring Afghanistan under the Taliban administration there.
The blast occurred about 4 p.m. in Bajaur, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province near Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan, said Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister.
It targeted a political rally organized by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl, an Islamist party that is part of the governing coalition in Pakistan.
A state of emergency has been imposed in the hospitals in Peshawar, the provincial capital.
A local leader of the political party who was onstage when the explosion occurred, Maulana Ziaullah, was among those killed.
Persons:
Feroz Jamal, Fazl, Mr, Jamal, Maulana Ziaullah
Organizations:
Jamiat Ulema, Islamic
Locations:
Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bajaur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan’s, Peshawar, Islamic State, Jamiat