Dozens Killed In Blasts Ahead Of Pakistani Elections; Islamic State Claims Responsibility
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLibertyFeb 07
Pakistan: Explosions Near Candidates' Offices Kill Dozens
Image copyright: Rebecca Conway/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
Coming a day before Pakistan's elections, two explosions went off Wednesday in the Balochistan province near the offices of a candidate in the Pishin district, killing 14 people, and also at the office of the Jamiat Ulema Islam (JUI) party, reportedly killing 12 and wounding at least 25.
Deputy Commissioner of the Pishin district, Jumma Dad Mandokhail, said the blast there, which went off outside the office of independent candidate Asfandyar Kakar, came from explosive material being planted in a motorcycle parked in the area.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Current local government reports have indicated that the Islamic State group was responsible for the motorcycle bombing, which is unsurprising given the terror group's recent attacks alongside those from Balochistan separatists and the Pakistani Taliban. As Pakistanis are still set to go to the polls, the government has rightly closed the borders to both Afghanistan and Iran to strengthen security ahead of the election. These terrorists must face a swift response for the carnage they caused in recent weeks.
Establishment-critical narrative
The recent turmoil in Pakistan must be scrutinized heavily. Regarding terror attacks, multiple members of Imran Khan's PTI party have been the targets of these attacks, despite the groups alleged to have committed them having no history of targeting the PTI. Secondly, the military-run Election Commission has conveniently announced potential issues with the voting database ahead of the election. All of this, on top of the obvious arrest of the most popular Prime Minister candidate, shows the government is doing everything it can to keep Khan out of office.
Nerd narrative
There's a 21% chance of civil war in Pakistan before 2036, according to the Metaculus prediction community.