A bombing at a political rally in Pakistan has killed at least 35 people

By: Caroline Chen

A powerful bomb blew up a rally by people who support the hard line cleric and political leader in Pakistan’s northwestern Bajur district that borders Afghanistan.

Senior police officer Nazir Khan said the workers' convention of Maulana Fazlur Rehman's Jamiat Ulema Islam party had been taking place on the outskirts of Khar, capital of the Bajur district, when the explosion took place.

The police initially claimed that only ten were dead, but later they found more bodies and they moved these bodies to the city’s main hospital for better medication. At least 35 people were killed and more than 100 people were wounded.

Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman's party, was reported dead. Senator Abdur Rasheed and lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but unhurt. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally.

Bajur, once a tribal region but now a district, has been a safe place for Islamic militants until recent years when the Pakistani military carried out massive operations to eliminate militancy from the tribal region. Militants are still striking and attacking security forces and civilians often.