Tariq Saeed
Peshawar
A bomb blast at the busiest marketplace in Parachinar on Thursday left around two dozen people including children seriously wounded. A number of wounded persons have been stated to be in precarious condition.
Reports reaching here said the explosion, believed to be carried out through an Improvised Explosives Device, ripped through the busy market called Toori Bazaar of Parachinar, a Shia dominated tribal city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Police and the officials of the district administration believe the IED was planted in a vegetable push cart parked in the market that is usually occupied by vegetable and fruit sellers. “The cause of the explosion was an improvised explosive device that had been fitted inside a vegetable cart,” Parachinar DSP Najab Ali said.
The Police and security personnel cordoned off the area and rescue workers shifted the victims to the district headquarters hospital for treatment. A team from the Bomb Disposal Squad also rushed to the scene and combed through the area to check for other IEDs.
Deputy Medical Superintendent Parachinar Hospital Dr. Qaiser Hassan said at least 20 people have been brought wounded for treatment adding injured include children. Two victims of the blast were in critical condition and shifted Peshawar for treatment.
Toori Bazaar, a crowded marketplace of Parachinar has in the past been a frequent target of terrorist attacks. Meanwhile, area residents gathered outside the local press club to stage a protest. The protestors said that such incidents have been taking place in Parachinar and its surrounding areas again and again and the residents continue to stage protests against them. They asked the government to take concrete steps to protect the lives of the people so that such incidents can be prevented. MNA Sajid Toori, who was elected from the area, said that peace had been established in the region due to the deployment of Pakistan Army personnel.
He said a second blast in the area in recent days shows that some elements are trying to ruin the peace in Parachinar, he said. He called upon law enforcement agencies to unmask such elements.
