Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb Friday in southwestern Pakistan that killed 59 people and wounded 160.
Qari Hussain, a senior member of the group -- also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP -- said the attack avenged the deaths of Sunni religious leaders by Shiites. The TTP also claimed responsibility this week for a trio of suicide attacks Wednesday during Shiite processions in Lahore, which killed 31 people.
The blast in the city of Quetta occurred during an Al Quds day rally, an annual event in the Arab and Muslim world that criticizes Israeli policies toward Palestinians.
Dramatic television images showed what appeared to be the blast, followed by heavy gunfire and people dispersing. Images also showed many casualties being treated.
The U.S. Justice Department announced this week that a key TTP leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, has been charged for his alleged involvement in the killings of seven U.S. citizens at an American military base in Afghanistan in 2009 and the attempted Times Square bombing this year. A $5 million reward is being offered for information leading to the capture of Mehsud and another top Pakistani Taliban leader, Wali Ur Rehman, U.S. officials said.
CNN
