Lahore Blast: 72 Killed, TTP Says it Targeted Christians on Easter

The brutal attack by a suicide bomber was claimed by the Jamaatul Ahrar, a splinter group of the TTP.

A woman injured in the bomb blast is comforted by a family member at a local hospital in Lahore, Pakistan, Sunday, March, 27, 2016. (Photo: AP)

• At least 72 people were killed and more than 300 injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up in Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore.
  
• The blast occured at 6:40 pm.
  
• Most victims were women and children, enjoying Easter holiday at a popular public park – Gulshan-e-Iqbal.
  
• TTP claimed responsibility for the blast, says the attack was on Christians celebrating Easter.
  
• Local television channels reported that many of the dead bodies were being kept in hospital wards as morgues were overcrowded.
  
• The government of Pakistan’s Punjab province has declared a three day mourning period.
  
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi called up his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif and offered his “deep condolences” to the victims.

At least 72 people, mostly women and children, enjoying Easter holiday at a popular public park, were killed on Sunday and over 300 injured when a suicide bomber belonging to Pakistani Taliban group blew himself up in the eastern city of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province.

A large number of people including Christians were present in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park in Iqbal Town area when the powerful blast occurred at 6:40 pm, leaving many in a pool of blood.

Relatives of a victim comfort each other at the Gulshan-e-Iqbal park in Lahore, Pakistan on Sunday, 27 March 2016. (Photo: AP)

The park is located in a posh-locality in Lahore—the hometown of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and a comparatively peaceful city in an otherwise violence-wracked country.

Army had also joined rescue officials to shift the injured to hospitals. An emergency had been declared in city hospitals and appeals have been made to people to donate blood.

TTP Splinter Group Claims Responsibility

The brutal attack by a suicide bomber—believed to be in his 20s—was claimed by the Jamaatul Ahrar, a splinter group of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

We claim responsibility for the attack on Christians as they were celebrating Easter. It was part of the annual martyrdom attacks we have started this year. We had been waiting for this occasion. We want to convey to the ruling PML-N and the prime minister that we we have arrived in Punjab and we will reach you.

Spokesperson for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Jamaat ul Ahrar, Ehansullah Ehsan <a href="http://tribune.com.pk/story/1073825/blast-in-lahore-leaves-several-injured/">told<i> The Express Tribune</i></a>

The group had previously claimed several bombings, including the Charsadda court attack this month, saying they were to avenge the hanging of Mumtaz Qadri, the killer of former Punjab governor Salman Taseer.

‘I Saw Bodies Flying in the Air’

Eyewitnesses, quoted by Reuters, said they saw body parts strewn across the parking lot once the dust had settled after the blast.

Rescue team outside the Gulshan-e-Iqbal in Lahore, Pakistan after the blast on Sunday, 27 March 2016. (Photo: AP)

When the blast occurred, the flames were so high they reached above the trees and I saw bodies flying in the air.

Hasan Imran, 30, a resident who had come to Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park for a walk.

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 five-year-old son.

Javed Ali, a 35-year-old resident who lives opposite park, said the force of the blast had shattered his home’s windows.

Speaking with The Express Tribune, he said,

Everything was shaking, there were cries and dust everywhere. After ten minutes I went outside. There was human flesh on the walls of our house. People were crying, I could hear ambulances.

Javed Ali, Resident

A Pakistani injured man from a bomb blast talks on his cell phone at a local hospital in Lahore. (Photo: AP)

One eyewitness, quoted by the BBC, said there was chaos, with a stampede breaking out and children separated from their parents in the rush to escape.

“We were just here to have a nice evening and enjoy the weather,” Nasreen Bibi said at the Services Hospital, crying as she waited for doctors to update her on the condition of her two-year-old injured daughter.

May God shower his wrath upon these attackers. What kind of people target little children in a park?

Nasreen Bibi, Victim’s Mother

Saleem Shahid, one of the injured in the blast, spoke with PTI at a city hospital where he was being treated.

My two children were taking swings when a powerful blast occurred. Me and the children fell on the ground. I was semi-unconscious. When I fully regained consciousness I ran to find my children. Thank God! They were alive with injuries on their head.

Saleem Shahid, Injured in the blast

Carnage

Media footage showed children and women standing in pools of blood outside the park, crying and screaming and rescue officials, police and bystanders carrying injured people to ambulances and private cars.

Dozens of women and children were seen being wheeled into hospitals, covered in blood. Many of the injured were transported to hospitals on taxis and auto-rickshaws due to a shortage of ambulances. Hundreds of citizens arrived outside hospitals to donate blood.

Local television channels reported that many of the dead bodies were being kept in hospital wards as morgues were overcrowded.

Pak Army Chief Chairs High Level Meeting

Gen Asim Bajwa, the public relations interface for Pakistan military, tweeted about Pakistan’s army chief Gen Raheel Sharif chairing a high-level meeting with representatives from ISI and Military Intelligence branches.

Meanwhile, the government of Pakistan’s Punjab province has declared a three day mourning period.

PM Modi Calls up Pakistan PM Sharif

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today called up his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif and offered his “deep condolences” to the victims of the terror attack.

MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup announced the development on Twitter.

Earlier in the day Modi had taken to twitter to “condemn” the blast.

Global Outrage and Condemnation Against the Attack

The United States condemned as “cowardly” the suicide attack, vowing to work with Pakistan to defeat those sowing terror in the country.

We will continue to work with our partners in Pakistan and across the region, as together we will be unyielding in our efforts to root out the scourge of terrorism.

Ned Price, National Security Council spokesman in a statement on behalf of the White House

Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai also condemned the attack.

Malala had survived an assassination attempt by the Pakistan Taliban in October 2012 after her calls for equal rights and education for girls angered them.

This is a developing story...