Peshawar, Pakistan – At least 32 people, including three Sikhs, died in a powerful bomb blast near a crowded market in Pakistan’s troubled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Friday, while more than 40 were wounded.
Officials said that an explosive was planted in a bicycle outside an imambarah (a religious seminary of Shia Muslims) in Kalaya Bazar, a Shia majority area in Lower Orakzai district.
District administration officials were quoted as saying that at least 31 people were killed and more than 40 people were injured in the blast.
Ameen Ullah, another senior official said that over 50 were injured, out which 17 are in critical condition.
Khalid Iqbal, Deputy Commissioner of Orakzai tribal district, told, “There were three Sikh businessmen and 3 children among the dead in the Orakzai blast.”
Officials said that the majority of the victims were Shia Muslims, who have been targeted earlier in the area.
A remote-powered bomber was inserted into a motorcycle.
Khalid Iqbal said that the area has been seized and investigations are underway.
An emergency situation has been announced in the area hospitals to deal with the situation.
-Harleen Sandhu
