09 August 2017

News Report: Truck Blast Injures More Than 30 in Pakistan

A truck bomb injured more than 30 people late Monday in Pakistan, in the latest bombing to rattle the eastern city of Lahore.

"The explosive material was planted inside a truck which was loaded with fruit," said Abdullah Khan Sumbal, a top government official in Lahore.

"At least 34 people have been injured, most of them were passersby," Sumbal said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, according to Reuters news service.

Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, is the power base of deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The Supreme Court disqualified Sharif earlier this month for concealing assets. The blast occurred in his constituency, now being contested after his disqualification.

Sharif planned to travel to Lahore from Islamabad on Wednesday.

Last month a suicide bomber from the militant group Pakistani Taliban killed at least 25 people in Lahore, many of them police.

This story first appeared on Voice of America & is reposted here with permission.