By – Prakarsh Kastwar
“The PTI rally was passing by there, but it is unclear whether it was a target or not,” senior police official Farhan Zahid told AFP.
A bombing at a Pakistani political event killed at least four people on Tuesday, according to officials, as the country prepares to vote next week.
According to police in the Balochistan provincial capital of Quetta, a bomb put on a motorcycle detonated as supporters marched for Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
“The PTI rally was passing by there, but it is unclear whether it was a target or not,” senior police official Farhan Zahid told AFP.
Waseem Baig, a provincial health department official, said six individuals were injured in addition to the four deceased.
In a statement, the PTI stated three of its supporters were killed at the demonstration, which was a convoy of motorcycles and cars parading through the city to gather support for a candidate ahead of the national elections on February 8.
A party official told AFP that it was too early to judge whether they had been purposefully targeted.
Pakistan’s electoral commission stated that it was investigating.
The attack occurred barely hours after PTI founder Khan was sentenced to ten years in prison on allegations of leaking confidential state documents.
Khan and the PTI claim they are facing an unprecedented crackdown aimed at preventing their return to power in the February 8 elections.
The 71-year-old former cricketer was removed from power in 2022 and launched a disobedience campaign against Pakistan’s military leaders, which he said colluded to overthrow his reign.
Since then, Khan has been buried in a deluge of legal lawsuits and forbidden from running for government, while the PTI has been virtually pushed out of the public eye.
Pakistan has also been experiencing a security crisis, with a major increase in extremist strikes since the Taliban regained power in neighboring Afghanistan.
According to the Islamabad-based Center for Research and Security Studies, more than 1,500 civilians, security officers, and terrorists were murdered last year, the highest number in six years.