PESHAWAR: An explosion during a cricket match in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province killed one person on Saturday, police said, in an attack for which no group has so far claimed responsibility.
The blast struck the Kausar Lachi Cricket Ground in Bajaur’s Loi Sim area around 6:30 p.m., and initial investigations suggested it was caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) planted in the ground.
It was not immediately clear whether the victim was the intended target.
“According to initial investigations, the device appears to have been planted in the ground,” Hunar Khan, a senior police officer, told Arab News over the phone.
He added that the remoteness of the area and poor communications had hampered the response.
Amjad Khan, a senior district official at Rescue1122, said his office received a call about the blast and dispatched a team to the site.
“Despite medical efforts, the victim was pronounced dead upon arrival at the medical facility,” he said, identifying the person killed as Fazalullah.
Police said a contingent had been deployed to secure the site and assess the situation.
Bajaur, a rugged district bordering Afghanistan, was once a stronghold of the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The militant network has repeatedly targeted security forces, police and local residents in the area.
Pakistan has seen a sharp rise in militant violence in recent years, with officials in Islamabad accusing the Afghan Taliban of sheltering TTP militants and facilitating their cross-border attacks.
The Taliban regime in Kabul has repeatedly denied these claims, saying Pakistan’s security challenges are an internal matter.
