ISLAMABAD, July 26 (Xinhua) -- The death toll of the twin blasts that hit Pakistan's northwest tribal region of Kurram Agency Friday evening has risen to 42, reported by local Urdu TV channel Geo.
The blasts also left more than 140 people injured, said the report.
Hospital sources said that about 20 injured people still remained in critical condition and the death toll may further increase.
According to local media reports, the blasts took place in Parachinar, capital town of Kurram Agency, which lies less than 20 kilometers away from the Afghan border.
The first blast occurred at about 5:00 p.m. local time when a bomb planted on a motorbike went off at a main bazaar in downtown Parachinar, which killed several people and wounded several others.
This was shortly followed by another blast at a Shia mosque on the School Road in the town.
The second blast is said to be of suicide nature.
Police sources also confirmed that one of the explosions is a suicide blast.
Local media quoted eyewitnesses as saying that a suicide bomber rammed his motorbike into the main gate of the mosque, leaving many killed and injured as there were a lot of people offering Friday prayers inside the mosque when the blast occurred.
All the injured have been shifted to the district headquarters hospital in the town.
Both Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif have strongly condemned the twin blasts and offered condolences to the families of the victims.
Located along the Pak-Afghan border, Kurram Agency is one of the seven tribal areas in Pakistan, which is frequently hunted by militancy. Earlier on Friday afternoon, a roadside-planted bomb hit a pickup in the Kharpata area of Kurram Agency, leaving at least two people killed and eight others injured, said the local state media APP.
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