In Pakistan, at least 25 people were killed and 65 injured when a powerful car bomb ripped through a crowded market outside an imambargah in the restive northwest tribal region. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack.<br/><br/>The car bomb went off near the main gate of the imambargah in the central bazar of Parachinar, Kurram Agency where a large number of people were shopping.<br/><br/>The condition of the majority of those injured was stated to be critical. Of these, 27 were airlifted to Peshawar hospitals. Scores of vehicles were also damaged in the blast.<br/><br/>Security forces cordoned off the area while emergency services were dispatched to the site. The administration has declared an emergency at all hospitals in the area. An Army medical evacuation helicopter has also been flown to Parachinar for evacuation of the injured.<br/><br/>Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif expressed grief over the blast and condemned the attack. Sharif reiterated his government's resolve to eliminate the menace of terrorism from the country at all costs.