Powerful explosion at Lal Shahbaz Qalandar’s shrine claims 75 lives

At least 75 people died while 300 others got injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up at Lal Shahbaz Qalandar’s shrine in Sehwan, Sindh. The attack took place on Thursday when devotees had gathered in hundreds to participate in dhamaal which is a form of spiritual worship.

According to the details provided by the police, the blast took place inside the premises of the shrine, increasing the casualty rate as the place was jam packed. After the blast, people panicked and a stampede situation was created.

Taluka Hospital Sehwan confirmed an initial death toll of 60 men, four women and six children. Out of all the bodies of the deceased, 55 have been handed over to their heirs while 15 are still unidentifiable. Hospital officials further informed that among the injured, 190 males, 11 females and nine children were under treatment while 41 wounded patients had been shifted to other hospitals.

Meanwhile MS Peoples Medical Center Nawabshah confirmed that 37 injured patients were being treated at its facility while ten had been transferred to a hospital in Karachi while four bodies were unidentified.

Initially, it was being speculated that the suicide bomber was a female, since he had covered himself with a burqa. However, Senior Counter-terrorism department (CTD) official Raja Umar Khattab dispelled these rumors and confirmed that the suicide bomber was a male. The long hair found at the blast site most likely belonged to one of the dervishes at the shrine.

Even though Daesh has claimed responsibility for the attack, the police are still continuing with their investigations to come up with a fact-based report.

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Posted by fatimaarshad on Feb 17 2017. Filed under Latest News, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.