The death toll in two suicide bombings targeting the Shia community in northwest Pakistan's restive tribal belt rose to 57 today as more people succumbed to their injuries.
Two suicide attackers blew themselves up in a busy market of Parachinar, the main town of Kurram Agency, yesterday while people were busy shopping for 'iftar', the sunset meal that marks the end of the fast during the holy month of Ramzan.
Riaz Mehsud, the Political Agent of Kurram Agency, confirmed to reporters that the death toll had risen to 57. A hospital official said 12 people had died overnight. Seven children were among the dead.
Over 130 people were being treated for various injuries and 24 of them were in a critical condition, the hospital official said.
Mehsud said investigators had established that both explosions were suicide attacks. "One of the suicide bombers blew himself up in one corner of the bazar and a minute later, the second bomber carried out an attack in another corner, causing widespread destruction," he said.
Most of the victims belonged to the minority Shia community.
Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks but the Taliban are active in the region and target civilians and security forces.
Unlike the other semi-autonomous districts in the tribal belt, Kurram Agency has a sizeable Shia population. Hundreds of people died in clashes between rival Shia and Sunni tribesmen in the region over the past few years.
The Shia community constitutes 20 per cent of the population in Pakistan.
