Suicide attack on Pakistan election rally kills thirteen
A senior Pakistan politician was among the 13 killed in a suicide blast at an election rally in Peshawar on Tuesday night. At least 54 others have been injured in the blast. City police Chief Jamil Qazi said, “The attack on a meeting of the Awami National Party (ANP) in Peshawar also injured nearly 50 others.” Awami National Party (ANP) candidate Haroon Bilour was about to address supporters when he was seriously injured in the attack. Mr Bilour was taken to hospital but later succumbed to his injuries. Bashir Ahmed Bilour father of Haroon Bilour, also a senior figure within the leftist secular party, was killed in a Taliban suicide blast at a party meeting in 2012. They both belonged to the ANP party which campaigns against the Taliban. It has been a regular target of militants operating in Pakistan's northwest. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has claimed responsibility for the deadly suicide attack in Peshawar, which claimed 13 lives. The Pakistani Taliban, which handles a group of several militant and sectarian bands, has been fighting against the Pakistani state for over a decade. They have killed thousands of people in their war. They want Pakistan to be a state run under their harsh interpretation of Islamic law. Imran Khan, leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), also condemned the attack last night. He tweeted, “Sad to learn of Haroon Bilour and 2 other ANP workers deaths and strongly condemn the terrorist attack at the ANP corner mtg in Peshawar. All political parties and their candidates must be provided with proper security during their election campaigns by the State.” Pakistan's military said on Tuesday that it would deploy over 371,000 troops to guard the general election later this month. -PTC News
