巴基斯坦遭遇恐怖袭击

The explosion happened in the parking area of Lahore's Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, close to the children's swings.

The park is a popular site for the city's Christian community, many of whom had gone there to celebrate Easter.

Many of the victims were women and children. A witness at the site describes the horror of the scene.

"Look at the blood on my hand. I was getting calls from home, people asking where I was. Yes everyone has to die one day, but kids were screaming, they were taken to the hospital on rickshaws and vehicles. There were few ambulances. They have arrived now and have started helping people."

Lahore is the capital city of Pakistan's Punjab Province. Abdul Hameed Gul is a provincial lawmaker from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League. He says Sunday's attack has put the local authorities on full alert.

"The chief minister of Punjab is monitoring the situation minute by minute after this sad incident in Lahore. The entire Punjab government and all its agencies are active. All hospitals have been issued red alerts, and all doctors' leave has been cancelled."

Dozens of women and children were wheeled into hospitals. Many of the injured were transported to hospitals in taxis and auto-rickshaws due to a shortage of ambulances. Hundreds of citizens arrived outside hospitals to donate blood.

A spokesperson for Punjab Province says the local hospital administration has identified and handed over the bodies of 54 victims to their relatives.

The Pakistani Minister of Ports and Shipping Karman Michael, who is also a Christian community leader, condemned the attack and called on all of Pakistan to address the issue of terrorism.

"We are really, really sad and feeling so upset because it is a day of our worship, it is a day of our holy festival and the terrorists has attacked on the innocent people. So we strongly condemned on the behalf of the government, on the behalf of the leader of our community. And I would like to say that it is our responsibility as a nation that we have to face all these circumstances."

Jamaat ul Ahrar, a Pakistani faction of the Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which was reportedly carried out by a local 28-year-old man.

Soon after the attack, the Punjab government ordered all public parks to be closed and announced three days of mourning in the province. The main shopping areas were shut down and many of the city's main roads were deserted.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and President Mamnoon Hussain condemned the blast, along with countries such as the US, Turkey, Canada and India.

Pakistan has a population of 190 million. It has been plagued by a Taliban insurgency. Punjab is its biggest and wealthiest province and has been traditionally more peaceful than other parts of the country.

For CRI, I'm Victor Ning.