Shah Noorani shrine blast death toll rises to 54, over 100 injured
There were over 500 people inside the shrine when the blast occurred.
QUETTA (Dunya News / AFP) - The death toll from suicide blast at Shah Noorani shrine on Saturday rose to 54, with 110 injured.
The blast targeted devotees who played Dhamal, a kind of mystic dance, at Shah Noorani Shrine located at a hilltop in Hub town of the Balochistan’s Kalat region.
Initial probe reveals that the attack was carried out by a burqa-clad suicide bomber who blew himself up at the place where the devotees were dancing. There were over 500 people, coming from different parts of the country, inside the shrine when the blast happened.
Authorities said they had dispatched ambulances and medical workers from Karachi, a three-hour drive from the shrine -- which is located in a remote, mountainous region with limited emergency facilities.
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Hafeez Ali, a 26-year-old mechanic from Karachi, said he was sitting on a hillside and watching the evening’s dance to drumbeat when he heard a loud noise and saw smoke rising.
"We realised that it was a bomb blast. Two of us rushed down and saw the bodies scattered all around -- mostly children. We also saw the drum beater dead and his exploded drum was lying nearby," Ali told AFP.
Ali said the shrine sits on a hill which devotees have to climb for half an hour as no road goes there, causing difficulties for rescuers.
Pakistan Army spokesman Lieutenant General Asim said 20 ambulances and 50 soldiers had reached the site, while a further 45 ambulances 100 troops were on their way.
A military helicopter would attempt evacuations at night, he added, but medical teams could not access the area by plane as their were no air strips close by.
Four bodies and 21 of the injured had arrived in Karachi’s Civil Hospital, officials said.
President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif strongly condemned the bombing in separate statements.
"The government is determined to eliminate terrorism and extremists from the country," Hussain said in a statement expressing sympathy with the victims and their families.
A statement from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s office said the premier called for the "best medical treatment" to be given to the wounded.
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