THE U.N. Security Council on Saturday condemned “in the strongest terms” Friday’s terrorist attack in southwestern Pakistan that killed 128 people and injured 200 others. Nawabzada Siraj Raisani, who was campaigning for an assembly seat in the southern province of Balochistan, was killed in the bomb blast, Balochistan province Home Secretary Haider Ali Shikoh told reporters. It is the deadliest terror strike in Pakistan this year. IS claimed responsibility for the attack in an email. The director of civil defense, Muhammad Aslam Tareen, said that eight to 10 kilograms of explosives were used in the attack. The violence comes the same day as former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif returns to Pakistan to face 10 years’ imprisonment on corruption-related charges. His conviction last week dealt a blow to his party’s prospects in the election and shifted the political landscape just three weeks before the vote.(SD-Xinhua) |