Peshawar blast toll mounts to 94

PESHAWAR: The total death toll from Peshawar blast has mounted to 90 while rescue sources say that more people could still be buried under the debris. Over 150 people sustained injuries in the blast.

Hospital sources have confirmed that 160 were brought there, and a list of 136 of these injured has been made visible inside the hospital premises.

According to details, the powerful blast occurred at Peepal Mandi ripped near Meena Bazar, Peshawar. The explosion triggered fire in nearby shops while an old building came to ground with the heavy impact which also caused damage to other surrounding buildings.

Most of the buildings in the area had already been declared to be in poor condition.

AIG Bomb Disposal Unit Shafqatullah Malik said that explosives, weighing 150 kilograms, were planted in a vehicle.

DCO Peshawar Sahibzada Anees has confirmed 87 deaths in the tragic incident while the hospital sources confirmed 89 people dead, majority of them are women and children.

Condition of many injured is said to be serious and the toll is feared to rise further.

Senior NWFP Minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour reiterated the commitment to bringing the terrorists to justice.

President Asif Ali Zardari has expressed profound grief over the loss of innocent lives in Peshawar bomb blast, while denouncing the incident, Prime Minister (PM) Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani directed concerned officials to provide the injured with all the possible medical relief. NWFP Chief Minister (CM), Amir Hyder Khan Hoti has ordered inquiry of the blast.

Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) Quaid Mian Nawaz Sharif, CM Punjab Shehbaz Sharif, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Quaid Altaf Hussain, Governor Punjab Salman Taseer, Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Qamar Zaman Kaira, NWFP CM Amir Hyder Hoti, Governor NWFP Owais Ahmed Ghani, CM Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Governor Sindh Dr Ishrat-ul-Ibad, CM Balochistan Aslam Raisani, Governor Balochistan Zulfiqar Magsi, Federal Ministers Farooq Sattar and Babar Ghauri, Amir Jamaat-e-Islami Syed Munawar Hassan and Qazi Husain Ahmed strongly condemned the blast.