Suicide bombers say they are sending a message to the government by targeting Christians in a public park
- At least 70 dead
- More than 300 injured
- The majority are women, children
- Lahore park was packed for Easter Sunday
- Taliban faction claims responsibility
Hunting the bombers
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The authorities in Pakistan are hunting the members of a Taliban splinter group who claimed to be behind a suicide bombing that has killed at least 70 people in Lahore.
More than 300 people were injured in the attack on Sunday evening, which targeted a busy park during Easter weekend.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, says it planted a device in this children’s playground.
Christians were the target of the attack, the group said in a statement, and the aim is to send a direct message to Pakistani President Nawaz Sharif.
At least 70 people died. More than 300 have been injured.
Lahore
- Capital of the Punjab, Pakistan’s richest province
- Seen as the country’s political and cultural heartland
- Affluent and liberal
What they are saying
“The target was Christians, we want to send this message to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that we have entered Lahore,” -*faction spokesperson Ehsanullah Ehsan*.
“We must bring the killers of our innocent brothers, sisters and children to justice and will never allow these savage inhumans to overrun our life and liberty,” military spokesman Asim Bajwa.