PESHAWAR: The death toll from a bomb blast at a market of Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt has risen to 24, officials said Sunday.
The explosion, which occurred on Saturday in Parachinar, capital of the Kurram tribal district, initially killed 20 people and was claimed by Taliban.
It was the first major militant attack in the country in 2017.
"The number of dead people from the blast is now 24 as four more injured have lost their lives," Naseerullah Khan, an administration official in the region, told AFP, adding the number of wounded stood at 90.
"Some 33 injured are being treated in the district hospital in Kurram while 25 have been shifted to a military hospital in Peshawar. Others with minor injuries have been discharged after first aid," Khan said.
The new toll was confirmed by police officials.
Ikramullah Khan, a senior government official in Parachinar, said that the blast was caused by an IED (improvised explosive device) hidden in a vegetable box.
In a telephone call to AFP, the Hakimullah Mehsud faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack.
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