Deadly Pakistan blast targets families
At least 69 killed, mostly women and children, as bomber strikes Christians celebrating Easter
ISLAMABAD— A breakaway Pakistani faction of the militant Taliban group has claimed responsibility for an Easter Sunday bombing in a park in the eastern city of Lahore that killed at least 69, mostly women and children.
Ahsanullah Ahsan, spokesman for Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, said a suicide bomber with the faction deliberately targeted the Christian community.
The explosion took place near the children’s rides in Gulshan-e-Iqbal park, which was crowded with Christians celebrating Easter.
Local police chief Haider Ashraf said the explosion appeared to have been a suicide bombing, but investigations were ongoing.
The explosion injured more than 300, said Deeba Shahnaz, a spokesman for Lahore rescue administration.
Most of the dead and injured were women and children, said Mohamed Usman, the city’s chief administrator.
Provincial government spokesman Zaeem Qadri said that the chief minister of Punjab province, Shahbaz Sharif, has announced three days of mourning and pledged to ensure that those involved in the attack are brought to justice.
The park was manned by police and private security guards, Ashraf said. “We are in a warlike situation and there is always a general threat but no specific threat alert was received for this place,” he added.
Schools and businesses in the city will remain closed on Monday, the city’s schools association and the Union of Lahore Traders said.
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif held a meeting to assess the security situation in Lahore, according to a government statement.
Pakistan’s army chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, also convened an emergency meeting of the country’s intelligence agencies to begin to track down those responsible for the attacks, said army spokesman Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa.
Salman Rafiq, a health adviser to the Punjab government, called on people to donate blood, saying that many of those injured were in critical condition.
Footage broadcast on local television stations showed chaotic scenes in the park, with people running while carrying children and cradling the injured in their laps.
A witness, not identified by name on Pakistan’s Geo TV station, said he was heading toward a fairground ride with his wife and two children when he heard a huge bang and all four of them were thrown to the floor. A woman was shown crying while looking desperately for her missing 5-year-old son.
A spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council said that the United States “condemns the attack in the strongest terms,” describing it as a “cowardly act in what has long been a scenic and placid park.” Ned Price said the U.S. would continue to work with Pakistan and its partners to “root out the scourge of terrorism.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also condemned the attack, tweeting that it was a “deplorable” act and offering his thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families.
Vikas Swarup, spokesman for In- dia’s External Affairs ministry, tweeted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his deep condolences at the terrorist attack. He said Modi “underlined the need for uncompromising efforts to fight against terrorism.”