Blast at Bajaur Cricket Ground: One Dead, Child Injured

A man was killed and a child injured in a blast at a cricket ground in Khar in Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday afternoon, police said.

Station House Officer Sher Zameen said that children were playing cricket when the blast occurred. He told reporters that explosives had been planted in the ground.

The victim was identified as Fazalullah. Videos shared online showed children fleeing the ground in panic. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Bajaur, one of Pakistan’s seven tribal districts, borders Afghanistan’s Kunar province. The region has witnessed deadly attacks on security forces, government officials, political leaders and members of peace committees.

A tribal jirga, which held talks with militants and security officials last month, ended without success. Security forces are now conducting targeted operations in the district.

Earlier, a grand tribal Jirga of Salarzai elders in Bajaur’s district announced that strict action would be taken against those found facilitating militants.

The Jirga, attended by all Salarzai tribes, was convened to send a clear message that militants and their supporters must stay away from their relatively peaceful region.

The meeting came as security forces continued targeted operations against the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), after earlier efforts by elders to persuade the militants to leave had failed.

“If anyone in Salarzai facilitates armed groups, his house will be demolished, he will be expelled from the area, fined Rs5 million, and his family will be declared enemies of the entire nation,” the Jirga declared in a statement.

The elders also announced a ban on unnecessary night-time movement. “If the government or any of its agencies want to take action in Salarzai, it will be done during the day. No one will be allowed at night,” the statement read.