PICTURES: Pakistan Bombing Kills 60 During Easter Celebration, Mostly Women and Children

Pakistani relatives brings an injured woman to the hospital in Lahore on March 27, 2016, a
ARIF ALI/AFP/Getty Images
Mary Chastain

**Update 2** Taliban takes credit.

**Update** AP’s latest on casualty count: “A spokesman for the Punjab government says that a bomb attack on a park in the Pakistani city of Lahore has killed 60 people and injured 300.”

An explosion in Lahore, Pakistan, has killed between 50-60 people, mostly women and children, and left hundreds injured as they celebrated Easter.

Law enforcement said the explosion occurred near a large group of Christians celebrating Easter, according to the Associated Press:

Senior police officer Haider Ashraf says the explosion took place close to the children’s rides in Gulshan-e-Iqbal park. He says the explosion appeared to have been a suicide bombing, but investigations were ongoing. The area was crowded with Christians celebrating the Easter holidays, he said.

“Most of the dead and injured are women and children,” explained Mustansar Feroz, the police superintendent.

The suicide bomber blew himself up “just outside the exit gate and feet away from a children’s play area” at the park. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. 

The Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park includes “wide lawns, a boating lake and amusement rides.”

 

https://twitter.com/khalidkhan787/status/714109745322397696

“We are in a warlike situation and there is always a general threat, but no specific threat alert was received for this place,” stated police chief Haider Ashraf.

“It was a soft target. Innocent women and children and visitors from other cities have been targeted,” continued Ashraf. “Apparently, it seems like a suicide attack.”

Another witness told the media “he was heading towards a ride with his wife and two children when he heard a huge bang and all four of them were thrown to the floor.”

“This cowardly act in what has long been a scenic and placid park has killed dozens of innocent civilians and left scores injured. We send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those killed, just as our thoughts and prayers are with the many injured in the explosion,” declared National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price.

Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif also condemned the attack.

Witnesses claimed they “saw body parts strewn across the parking lot once the dust had settled.” Footage shows women and children screaming after the explosion.

The United States also condemned the attack:

“This cowardly act in what has long been a scenic and placid park has killed dozens of innocent civilians and left scores injured. We send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those killed, just as our thoughts and prayers are with the many injured in the explosion,” said an official statement issued in Washington.

“The United States stands with the people and government of Pakistan at this difficult hour. We will continue to work with our partners in Pakistan and across the region, as together we will be unyielding in our efforts to root out the scourge of terrorism.”

At this time last year, bombs exploded at two churches in Lahore. Those attacks killed 14 people and wounded 80.

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