LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- At least 44 people have been killed, more than 100 wounded when a blast ripped through a political gathering in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan.
According to Agence France Presse (AFP), the sight of blood-stained chairs, scattered ball bearings and shoes shed by the dead, followed the suicide bombing at the Islamic Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F gathering by party members.
“Upon arriving at the scene, I was confronted with a devastating sight,” Khar resident Fazal Aman, told AFP earlier today.
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“Lifeless bodies scattered on the ground while people cried out for help.”
“Party paraphernalia, including hats and scarves in JUI-F’s black-and-white branding, were abandoned and trampled into the dusty ground, some flecked with dried blood,” he added.
Regional counter-terrorism Deputy Inspector, Gen. Sohail Khalid told AFP that the bomber used around 40 kilograms (90 pounds) of explosives, bound up with ball bearings to cause maximum carnage.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, but the local chapter of the Islamic State group has recently targeted JUI-F, a key Government coalition partner led by a firebrand cleric, AFP reports.