Pakistan General Election 2018: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemns suicide attack near Quetta polling station

United Nations: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday condemned the killing of dozens of people near a polling station in Pakistan’s western Quetta city in a suicide attack. The suicide bombing killed at least 31 people and injured another 70. It was claimed by the terror group Islamic State. [caption id=“attachment_4059017” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Gueterres. AP[/caption] Pakistan has witnessed violence across the country in the run-up to the parliamentary and provincial Assembly elections held on Wednesday. The elections mark only the second time that one civilian government has handed power to another after serving a full term in office. “The Secretary-General condemns the suicide attack at a polling station in Quetta claimed by Da’esh,” his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement, using the Arabic name for Islamic State. “He extends his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and people of Pakistan.” Despite the violence, news outlets reported that millions of Pakistanis showed up to cast their vote across the 85,000 polling stations. The spokesperson stressed that “the United Nations stands in solidarity with, and supports the efforts of the Government of Pakistan, in the fight against terrorism.”

President of the UN General Assembly Miroslav Lajcák also condemned the attack, which he called “despicable”. The suicide bombing in Quetta followed a series of terrorist attacks earlier in the month in Pakistan, including one in Mastung, in which 153 people lost their lives. Follow Pakistan Election Results 2018 LIVE Updates here