On 30 July 2023, the Islamic State – Khorasan Province carried out a

suicide bombing A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

at a

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (Fazl) also Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) or simply as Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Urdu: ; ; JUI-F) is a Deobandi Sunni political party in Pakistan. Established as the ''Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam'' in 1945, it is the result o ...

rally in Khar, Bajaur District,

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, killing at least 63 people and injuring nearly 200 others.

Background

(JUI-F) is a conservative political and religious party led by Fazal-ur-Rehman. It is supportive of the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

. The JUI-F had been preparing for a general election after the dissolution of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

. Religious parties have attempted to use an economic crisis and former

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ( ur}; born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former Cricket captain who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 to until April 2022, when he was ousted through a no-confidenc ...

arrest An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be questi ...

to their advantage. The

insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa The insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, also known as the War in North-West Pakistan or Pakistan's war on terror, is an ongoing armed conflict involving Pakistan, and Islamist militant groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jundall ...

began in 2004 and its volatility peaked in the late 2000s and early 2010s, including two

suicide bombings A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

in Khar in

January January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the first of seven months to have a length of 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the ...

and

December December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the last of seven months to have a length of 31 days. December got its name from the Latin word ''decem'' (meaning ten) because it was or ...

of 2010. This

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

slowed to a

low-intensity conflict A low-intensity conflict (LIC) is a military conflict, usually localised, between two or more state or non-state groups which is below the intensity of conventional war. It involves the state's use of military forces applied selectively and with ...

in 2017. However, the region has seen an increase in

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

activity during the 2020s, with major protests erupting against the deteriorating security situation in January 2023.

Bombing

JUI-F organized a workers' convention on 30 July 2023. At around 4 p.m., when over 400 party members and supporters were present, a suicide bomber approached the stage and detonated an explosive vest. At least 63 people were killed and nearly 200 others were injured, including many children. Maulana Zia Ullah, a local leader of the JUI-F, was killed in the attack and it was the second assassination attempt on him. On 31 July, the Islamic State – Khorasan Province (IS–KP) claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing.

Reactions

The

Pakistani Taliban The Pakistani Taliban (), formally called the Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (Urdu/ ps, , lit=Student Movement of Pakistan, TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani bor ...

condemned the bombing, as did

Zabihullah Mujahid Zabihullah Mujahid ( ps, ; ''Ẕabīḥullāh Mujāhid'' ; also spelled Dhabih Allah Mujahid) is an Afghan official Central spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan since 25 October 2021 and Deputy Ministry of Information and Culture s ...

, a spokesperson for the Afghan Taliban. In a message on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

, Mujahid wrote, "Such crimes cannot be justified in any way". Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the bombing and gave his condolences to the families of the victims. In a statement by his party Foreign Minister Bilawal Zardari "expressed deep sorrow over the loss of precious lives" and also said "the terrorists, their facilitators and planners need to be eliminated so that peace is established in the country". Minister of Information and Broadcasting

Marriyum Aurangzeb Marriyum Aurangzeb ( ur, ) is a Pakistani politician from Pakistan Muslim League (N) who is a member of the National Assembly. She is current federal minister of Information & Broadcasting in Shehbaz Sharif ministry. Aurangzeb served as the ...

stated on social media that "religion of terrorists is only terrorism. Ending terrorism is very important for the survival and integrity of Pakistan".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khar bombing, 2023 2023 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 2023 murders in Pakistan 21st-century mass murder in Pakistan Bajaur District History of Khar Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa IS-KP terrorist incidents in Pakistan Islamic terrorist incidents in 2023 Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) July 2023 crimes in Asia July 2023 events in Pakistan Mass murder in 2023 Mass murder in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Suicide bombings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2023

Background

Bombing

Reactions

See also

References