Sharif arrested as poll rally blast kills 128
EX-PM, DAUGHTER TAKEN TO ISLAMABAD ON ARRIVAL IN LAHORE
The deadliest attack in Pakistan’s troubled election campaign killed 128 people, including a candidate, in southwestern Balochistan province yesterday as disgraced former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was arrested on his return to Pakistan.
Sharif was arrested on his return to the country, where he faces 10 years in prison for corruption, ahead of already tense elections his party says are being rigged.
Sharif and his daughter Maryam “have been arrested” by anti-corruption authorities “with immediate effect and till further orders”, according to a statement from the Islamabad city administration. They landed in Lahore and were then taken to the capital. Maryam Sharif faces seven years in jail.
In the Balochistan town
of Mastung, Siraj Raisani a candidate in the provincial Parliament, died when a suicide bomber blew himself up amid scores of supporters who had gathered at a rally.
Raisani is the brother of the former Balochistan chief minister, Aslam Raisani. Caretaker Home Minister Agha Umar Bungalzai said another 120 people were wounded in the bombing.
Sharif returned from London. He was visiting his ailing wife when a court convicted him and his daughter of corruption.
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Asuicide bomber killed at least 85 people at an election rally in southwestern Pakistan in the second election-related attack yesterday, officials said, amid growing tensions over ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s return ahead of the July 25 vote.
Balochistan caretaker Health Minister Faiz Kakar said that the death toll had risen to 85 people, with over 120 wounded.
Police had earlier said that more than 1,000 people were in attendance at the rally.
Agha Umar Bungalzai, provincial home minister, said that the blast occured in Mastung town, near the Balochistan capital of Quetta. “It apparently was a suicide attack,” he added.
A senior local administration official, Qaim Lashari also confirmed the new toll, saying the figure was likely to rise.
Bungalzai said the explosion killed Siraj Raisani, who was running for a provincial seat with the newly-formed Balochistan Awami Party (BAP).
“Mir Siraj Raisani succumbed ■ to wounds while he was being shifted to Quetta,” he added. Raisani was the younger brother of former provincial chief minister Mir Aslam Raisani.
The explosion comes hours after four people were killed and 39 injured when a bomb hidden inside a motorcycle detonated near a Pakistani politician’s convoy in the country’s northwest yesterday, near the Afghan border.
The earlier bomb, near the town of Bannu, targeted the convoy of the Muttahida Majlis-eAmal (MMA) candidate Akram Khan Durrani, who survived the attack, police said. No group has yet claimed responsibility.
Tuesday blast
On Tuesday a bomb claimed by the Pakistani Taliban targeted a rally by the Awami National Party (ANP) in the city of Peshawar. Hospital officials said yesterday that the toll in that attack had risen to 22.Local ANP leader Haroon Bilour was among those killed. Thousands flocked to his funeral the next day. Following the attacks, activists called for Pakistani authorities to remain vigilant to protect candidates during the final days of the campaign season.
“The Pakistani authorities have a duty to protect the rights of all Pakistanis during this election period — their physical security and their ability to express their political views freely, regardless of which party they belong to,” said Omar Waraich, deputy South Asia director at Amnesty International.
Militants have targeted politicians, religious gatherings, security forces and even schools in Pakistan. But security across the country has dramatically improved since government and military operations cleared large swathes of territory near the Afghan border in recent years. Analysts warn however that Pakistan has yet to tackle the root causes of extremism, and militants retain the ability to carry out attacks.