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2013 Pic of Bombing Shared as ‘Blast in Pak After Match Victory Celebrations'

The 2013 photo shows the aftermath of two suicide bombings at a crowded snooker club in Quetta, Pakistan.

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An old photograph showing charred and damaged vehicles, along with people's personal belongings is being shared by social media users, claiming that it shows a celebratory blast that went wrong and claimed lives and injured many.

As per the claim, Pakistanis were celebrating their victory over India by 10 wickets in a recent cricket match when the incident occurred.

However, we found that the photo is an old one from Quetta, Pakistan, dating back to 2013. The photo shows the aftermath of two devastating blasts carried out by a sectarian militant group called Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which killed over 115 people.

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CLAIM

The photograph is being shared across social media platforms accompanied by Hindi text, which reads:

"भारत को 10 विकेट से हराने कि खुशी में बम फोडने से पाकिस्तान मे बीस मरे, कई घायल"

[Translation: Celebrating India's loss by 10 wickets, a celebratory blast in Pakistan kills 10, injures many.]

More claims on Facebook and Twitter can be seen here, here, and here.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

Using reverse image search, we came across a photo story by Livemint from January 2013, which reported on devastating bomb blasts in Quetta, Pakistan.

Attributing the photo to Reuters, the caption of the photo noted it showed the scene in Quetta after two suicide bombers blew themselves up at a crowded snooker club.

We looked for the picture on Reuters Pictures' website, where it was attributed to photographer Naseer Ahmed. Its caption said that the explosion occurred on 10 January 2013 near Bacha Khan chowk in Quetta, Pakistan.

Using relevant keywords, we looked for news reports on the blasts.

Two suicide bombings took place in an interval of ten minutes at a crowded snooker club in Quetta, Pakistan, reported BBC. Sunni extremist outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for the explosions, which were carried out in a predominantly Shia Muslim area, said the report.

The Guardian reported that the first bomber did the deed on foot, while the second blast was a car bomb.

It added that the second blast, which occurred ten minutes after the first one and caused the building to fall down, "appeared to be deliberately designed to kill the medical workers, anguished relatives, and journalists who rushed to the scene".

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Clearly, a 2013 photo of twin bombings in Pakistan's Quetta was shared by social media users, with the false claim that it shows a blast that killed 10 as Pakistan celebrated its victory over India in a cricket match.

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9643651818, or e-mail it to us at webqoof@thequint.com and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)

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