Twenty Nine Children Among 72 Killed In Sunday's Suicide Bombing At A Park In Pakistan.[Photos].

More than 70 people, including 29 children, have been killed by a Taliban suicide bomber who targeted Christians near a children's playground in a park in Pakistan.

Some 300 people were injured when explosives packed with ball bearings ripped through crowds near the children's swings in the Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, in Lahore, where many had gathered to celebrate Easter.

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban, has claimed responsibility for the attack, adding: 'The target was Christians.'
Senior police official Haider Ashraf confirmed that the death toll had risen to 72 on Monday morning, adding the majority of the dead were Muslims.
An injured Pakistani child victim of a suicide blast rests in a hospital in Lahore after a suicide bomber attacked a park thronging with families celebrating Easter killed at least 72 people

Rescuers seen helping the injured people at the explosion site, where at least 29 children lost their lives

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban, has claimed responsibility for the attack

The blast happened a few metres away from children's swings, and most of the victims are believed to be women and children.

Witnesses described children screaming as people carried the injured in their arms, while frantic relatives searched for loved ones.

The chief minister of Punjab province, Shahbaz Sharif, has announced three days mourning and pledged to ensure that those involved in the attack are brought to trial.

Nasreen Bibi, the mother of a two-year-old injured in the attack, spoke through tears as she waited for news from the doctors.

'We were just here to have a nice evening and enjoy the weather. May God shower his wrath upon these attackers. What kind of people target little children in a park?'

A girl who was injured in the suicide bomb blast is rushed to a hospital in Lahore in the wake of the bombing

Injured children recover in hospital as the death toll rose to 72 on Monday morning

Bodies were lined up by the side of a fairground ride after the tragic bombing in which 70 people have been killed, and the death toll is expected to rise further

Pakistani emergency workers and police officers gather at the blast site, where 300 people were injured

The blast occurred in the parking area of Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, a few metres away from children's swings, and most of those hurt and killed are thought to be women and children

ball bearings were found at the blast site, where armed police are still standing guard late into the evening

Men mourn the death of their relatives after a blast outside a public park in Lahore that was attacked

Scenes of distress were seen on the streets as local people came to terms with the anguish of the attack

People in the area rushed to help more than 300 people who were injured in the blast and they are now filling up hospitals nearby

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast but the country is plagued with Taliban insurgents and criminal gangs

The group responsible for the attack was founded by Omar Khalid Korasani, a former Taliban senior leader who broke off from the main group to form the more-hardline organization in 2014.

He re-aligned with the main Pakistani Taliban leadership last year, and the group are currently waging war on the government, which in 2014 vowed to grant no safe haven to terrorists.

The attack happened in the heart of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif political base in Punjab.

In a statement, the group said: 'We claim responsibility for the attack on Christians as they were celebrating Easter.

'We want to send this message to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that we have entered Lahore. He can do what he wants but he won't be able to stop us. Our suicide bombers will continue these attacks.'

The group was previously responsible for a March 2015 bombing at a Roman Catholic church in Lahore that killed 15 people and injured 70 others.

Today, eyewitnesses said they saw body parts strewn across the parking lot once the dust had settled after the blast.

The army had been called in and soldiers were at the scene helping with rescue operations and security.

Police chief Haider Ashraf said. 'We are in a warlike situation and there is always a general threat but no specific threat alert was received for this place.'

Salman Rafiq, a health adviser to the Punjab government, called on people to donate blood, saying that many of those wounded were in a critical condition.

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