International

Suicide blast kills 72 in Lahore Park

At least 72 people were killed and more than 233 injured when a suicide bomb ripped through the parking space of a crowded park in Lahore of Pakistan where Christians were celebrating Easter Sunday, officials said.Dozens of ambulances were seen racing to the Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, situated near Allama Iqbal Town, with many women and children among the dead and wounded.Rescue spokesperson Deeba Shahbaz said the toll had risen to 72 Monday, with 29 children among the dead. Senior police official Haider Ashraf confirmed the number killed, adding the majority of the dead were Muslims, AFP reported.‘Christians were not the specific target of this attack because the majority of the dead are Muslims,’ he said. ‘Everybody goes to this park.’ The Express Tribune reports.Lahore’s top administration official Muhammad Usman said 233 were wounded. Late Sunday rescue officials had put the number of injured at more than 300.Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Syed Khurhseed Ahmed Shah, on Monday demanded the government to brief the parliament on India’s alleged involvement in destabilising Pakistan.‘I demand the government to brief the lawmakers in the parliament on how a neighbouring country was trying to destabilise our country,’ he said referring to Indian premier agency’s alleged involvement in perpetrating terror in Balochistan and Karachi.Talking to media in Sukkur, Shah said it was a high time the nation got united against terrorism.‘I am sure that we will be able to stop such events and will be able to arrest those carrying out such activities by making use of modern technology,’ the Opposition Leader said.‘Our law enforcement agencies will have to be on the top of this and they will succeed in stopping such events from happening,’ he added.PM arrives in LahorePrime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in Lahore early Monday morning. The premier is accompanied by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar.PM Nawaz is visiting victims of the blast at Jinnah Hospital Lahore.The army had been called in, he said, and soldiers were at the scene helping with rescue operations and security.Senior police official Haider Ashraf said the blast appeared to be a suicide attack, adding that ball bearings were found at the crowded park.A medical superintendent at Jinnah Hospital, who gave his name only as Dr Ashraf, told AFP more than 40 dead bodies had arrived at the hospital.‘The number of injured stands at more than 200 people, most of them are in critical condition,’ he said. I fear the death toll will rise.”He described a nightmarish scene at the hospital, with staff treating casualties on floors and in corridors.Javed Ali, a 35-year-old resident who lives opposite park, said the force of the blast had shattered his home’s windows.