UPDATE 2- At least 9 killed, 29 injured after explosion targets public rally in southwestern Pakistan

​​​​​​​ADDS NEW CASUALTIES; CHANGES HEADLINE, LEDE

By Aamir Latif and Berk Kutay Gokmen

KARACHI, Pakistan/ISTANBUL (AA) - An explosion Tuesday targeting a public rally in southwestern Pakistan killed at least nine people and injured 29 others, according to police.

The blast occurred outside a stadium in Quetta, capital of the southwestern Balochistan province, soon after the culmination of the gathering, said police and the media.

Footage on Samaa News showed people putting the injured into police vans and private vehicles.

There was no immediate word on the nature of the blast.

The gathering was organized by the Balochistan National Party, a nationalist party led by Sardar Akhtar Mental, a former chief minister of the province.

The mineral-rich province, including Quetta, has long been a hotbed of violence, where security forces have been facing a low-intensity rebellion.