Woman, child among 17 injured in Parachinar blast

PARACHINAR: At least 17 persons, including a woman and a child, were injured in a bomb explosion at Turi Bazaar in Parachinar, the headquarters of Kurram district, on Thursday.

Eyewitnesses and officials of police and district administration said that a bomb fitted to a fruit and vegetable cart exploded when there was a great rush of people at Turi Bazaar in Parachinar.

They said that at least 17 persons, including a woman and a child were injured in the explosion. District Headquarters Hospital (DHQ), Parachinar, Deputy Medical Superintendent Dr Qaiser Abbas Bangash said that at least 17 injured, including a woman and a child, were brought to the facility.

He said that two out of the 17 injured were in a serious condition while one wounded person was referred to a hospital in Peshawar due to his precarious condition. Har Hussain, an injured of the explosion, told media that they were busy in purchasing fruit and vegetables when a bomb exploded with a big bang at Turi Bazaar. Police and security personnel cordoned off the area. A team from the Bomb Disposal Unit also rushed to the scene to comb through the area and check for other improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Deputy Commissioner Shah Fahad said that a high- level probe would be conducted into the bomb explosion to ascertain the exact cause of terror act and arrest the perpetrators. Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Parachinar, Najab Ali said that the cause of the explosion was an improvised explosive device (IED) that had been fitted to a vegetable cart.

However, his claim could not be confirmed by independent sources. Member National Assembly (MNA) Sajid Hussain Turi, who was elected from the area, said that peace had been established in the region due to the matchless sacrifices of people and security forces.

However, he said that the second blast in the area in recent days showed that some elements were trying to ruin the peace in Parachinar. He urged the law enforcement agencies to unearth the elements involved in sabotage activities. Meanwhile, area residents gathered outside the local press club to stage a protest against terror act.

Speaking to protesters, Zahid Hussain and Shafiq Hussain Mutahiri said that such incidents were taking place in Parachinar and its surrounding areas time and again and the residents continue to stage protests against them. They called upon officials of law enforcing agencies to take practical steps to prevent recurrence of such incidents in the area.