Lahore: A suicide bomber killed at least 56 people, mostly women and children, at a public park in the Pakistani city of Lahore on Sunday, government officials and police said, striking at the heart of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s political base of Punjab.
The blast occurred in the parking area of Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, a few feet (meters) away from children’s swings. Around 150 people were injured in the explosion, officials said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast. Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation of 190 million people, is plagued by a Taliban insurgency, criminal gags and sectarian violence. Punjab is its biggest and wealthiest province. Eyewitnesses said they saw body parts strewn across the parking lot once the dust had settled after the blast.
The park had been particularly busy on Sunday evening due to the Easter holiday weekend. Salman Rafique, a health adviser for the Punjab provincial government, put the death toll at least 52 people.
“Most of the dead and injured are women and children. A large crowd had gathered for Easter celebrations,” a police official said. Media footage showed children and women crying and screaming and rescue officials, police and bystanders carrying injured people to ambulances and private cars.
In 2014, Pakistan launched an offensive against Taliban and affiliated jihadist fighters in North Waziristan, seeking to deprive them of safe havens from which to launch attacks in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Punjab has traditionally been more peaceful than other parts of Pakistan. Sharif's opponents have accused him of tolerating militancy in return for peace in his province, a charge he strongly denies.
A man talking to Dawn News said, “The park is huge and has many entrance gates. There was almost negligible security personnel present there.” A Rescue 1122 spokesman confirmed that an emergency call was received at around 6:44pm and that over 20 ambulances reached the site.
