Forty-three people were killed and over one hundred injured in a bombing near Khan Raziq police station in Qissa Khwani bazaar on Sunday.
This is the third attack in Peshawar in a week. The dead also included six children and two women and 13 people of a family. Three plazas, dozens of shops and houses and scores of vehicles parked near the police station were destroyed in the bombing.
Bomb Disposal Squad AIG Shafqat Malik told that explosive material of 200-225 Kg was used in the blast.
He said that explosive laden vehicle served as a huge bomb that increased the intensity of the blast.
The explosion ignited fire that engulfed the nearby buildings besides damaging six vehicles, one tri-wheeler and four motorcycles.
A crater was also formed on the site of the blast.
Trader community said that a total of 85 shops were damaged among which 30 were destroyed completely.
Soon after the incident, rescue workers rushed to the spot and shifted the injured to Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) where conditions of some were stated to be precarious.
The first two bombings occurred on Sunday and Friday in which over 84 Christians were killed at All Saints Church, Kohati Gate and 19 government employees in a bus on Charsadda Road.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Senior Minister Sirajul Haq said it appeared that the federal government had so far taken no steps following the APC meeting to implement the agenda. He said the government should implement the APC decisions, adding that the prime minister should give priority to the APC mandate.
Ayesha Gulalai Wazir, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA, told reporters at the bombing scene that some elements did not want peace to prevail in the province. She said the dialogue process should begin as quickly as possible.
Senior Minister Sikandar Sherpao said the government wanted peace and the bombings were the handiwork of those who did not want peace to return to the province. Sherpao said the federal government should take the provincial government into confidence to devise a joint strategy.
Peshawar Commissioner Sahibzada Anees said the bombing was not the result of a security lapse. The government was taking security measures and revised security plans everyday to protect people.
Police have arrested a suspect.
Separately, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday condemned the Peshawar bombing and assured the nation, especially the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that the culprits would be brought to justice soon.
In a statement, he said that nothing justified the killing of innocent people including women and children and this is against Islam.
It is unfortunate that some parties are again using this tragedy for political point scoring when all political forces should be together to bring peace to Pakistan, Khan added.
Imran Khan said he had demanded of the PTI coalition government to move on emergency basis to bolster the provincial security and intelligence set ups.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Sunday condemned the bombing.
Nawaz said that those involved in the killing of innocent people are devoid of humanity and all religions.
He said the barbaric acts of terrorism could not deter the government’s resolve to ensure peace in the country.
