Bomb explosion near cricket match kills 1 in northwestern Pakistan

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD (AA) - At least one person was killed and several others injured when a bomb blast struck near an ongoing cricket match in Bajaur area of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistani official said on Saturday.

Bilal Faizi, spokesman of Rescue 1122, told Anadolu that so far one person has been killed in the explosion and several other minor injuries were sustained, who were moved to the local hospital.

The blast occurred this afternoon when dozens of people were watching the cricket match between two local teams in the Khar area of Bajaur.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but mostly the outlawed network Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed previous attacks in this area.

A large-scale military operation is already underway in Bajaur tribal district, where authorities say militants loyal to TTP are hiding.

The South Asian country has been reeling from mounting terrorist attacks over the past few years, for which it accuses "Afghanistan-based" militants.

Kabul, however, denies the accusation.