A political rally organized by supporters of the Islamist party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl was held in northwestern Pakistan. An explosion occurred during the event. At least 44 people were killed, police said. CNN reported.
About 200 were injured. «Khar town, in Bajaur district close to the border with Afghanistan, where the rally was held, is considered a disputed territory and in the past the base of the Pakistani radical Islamist movement Tehrik-i-Taliban, which is closely associated with the Afghan Taliban, was located there. In recent years, government troops have managed to strengthen their control over the territory,» the media outlet notes.
According to police, a suicide bomber set off the explosives while a number of Islamist party leaders were on stage. They were not injured. It is not yet clear who is behind the explosion. Both the Pakistani authorities and the Taliban ruling neighboring Afghanistan condemned the blast.
