A Taliban suicide bomber who attacked a Pakistani park thronging with families was targeting Christians

A Taliban suicide bomber who attacked a Pakistani park thronging with families was targeting Christians, the group said Monday, as the death toll rose to 72, with children making up nearly half of the dead.

More than 200 people were hurt when explosives packed with ball bearings ripped through crowds near a children's play area in the park in Lahore, where many had gathered to celebrate Easter.

"We carried out the Lahore attack as Christians are our target," Ehansullah Ehsan, spokesman for the terrorist Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), told AFP by telephone from an undisclosed location.

He said the group would carry out more such attacks, vowing to target schools and colleges alongside government and military interests.