LAHORE, Pakistan >> The Latest on Pakistan’s upcoming national elections and the return of Nawaz Sharif (all times local):

12:55 a.m.

A Pakistani government official says the death toll from a suicide bombing at an election rally in the country’s southwest has risen to 128.

Provincial caretaker Home Minister Agha Umar Bungalzai says about 300 people were also wounded Friday when the bomber targeted a rally for candidate Siraj Raisani, who was running for a seat in the provincial legislature.

The attack took place in Mastung, a town in the southwestern Baluchistan province.

The attack was the deadliest yet ahead of the July 25 parliamentary election and it came despite assurance from the military that it would take all possible measures to ensure a peaceful environment for the vote.

9:30 p.m.

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a deadly attack at an election rally in southwest Pakistan that killed 70 people, including a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature in the July 25 parliamentary elections.

Friday’s claim by the group was carried by its Aamaq news agency.

The group gave no reason for the bombing that killed Siraj Raisani, who was running for the election on the Baluchistan Awami Party ticket.

Raisani was attending a rally in Mastung, a town in Baluchistan, when the suicide bomber targeted him.

9:10 p.m.

Airport authorities say a plane carrying disgraced former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz has landed at Allama Iqbal International Airport in the eastern city of Lahore.

Mohamed Zahid, an official at the airport, said officials from Pakistan’s anti-graft body are present at the airport to arrest Sharif and his daughter who were convicted and sentenced in absentia to ten and seven years, respectively, in a corruption case.

Sharif and his daughter are expected to be transported to the garrison city of Rawalpindi, where both will serve their jail term if they don’t seek bail.

The pair arrived from London, where they were visiting Sharif’s ailing wife when a Pakistani court convicted them of corruption.

8:55 p.m.

Pakistani officials say a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature in the July 25 parliamentary elections has been killed along with 69 others in a suicide bombing at his rally southwest of the country.

Agha Umar Bungalzai, the provincial caretaker home minister, said Friday that Siraj Raisani, who was running for the election on ticket of Baluchistan Awami Party, died Friday at a hospital in Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province hours after being critically wounded.

Raisani was attending the rally in Mastung, a town in Baluchistan, when a suicide bomber targeted him.

8:35 p.m.

Pakistani officials say a suicide bomber has carried out a deadly attack that killed 70 people at an election rally of a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature in the country’s southwest.

Provincial caretaker home minister Agha Umar Bungalzai said Friday that the bomber targeted the candidate Siraj Raisani, critically wounding him in Mastung, a town in the southwestern Baluchistan province.

Qaim Lashari, a deputy commissioner in Mastung, said the bombing also wounded 120 people.

The attack was the deadliest violence ahead of the July 25 parliamentary election and comes despite assurances from the military that it would take all possible measures to ensure a peaceful voting process.

7:30 p.m.

A provincial caretaker home minister says the death toll from a deadly bombing near the election rally of a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature has jumped to 65.

Minister Agha Umar Bungalzai told The Associated Press that the candidate Siraj Raisani was critically wounded in Friday’s bombing in Mastung, a town in the southwestern Baluchistan province.

He said 45 people were also wounded in the bombing, the second election-related violence in a day.

Bungalzai said Raisani is from the Baluchistan Awami Party and he is the brother of a former provincial chief minister, Nawab Aslam Raisani.

5:35 p.m.

A Pakistani official says a bomb that exploded near the election rally of a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature has killed at least 10 people and wounded 25 others.

Ali Mardan, a doctor at Quetta’s main hospital, said the facility received 10 bodies after the bombing that targeted Siraj Raisani, who is running for a seat in the legislature in July 25 elections.

Officials say Raisani was critically wounded in the attack.

The attack took place in Mastung, a town in southwest Baluchistan province.

It was the second election-related bombing Friday in this Islamic nation.

5 p.m.

A Pakistani official says a bomb has exploded near the election rally of a politician running for a seat in a provincial legislature in the southwest, wounding him and 30 others.

Qaim Lashari, deputy district commissioner, says Friday’s attack targeted Siraj Raisani, a candidate from the Baluchistan Awami Party running for a seat in the legislature in July 25 elections.

Lashari says the bombing took place in Mastung, a town in southwest Baluchistan province.

It was the second election-related bombing Friday in this Islamic nation.

Earlier, four people were killed and 20 others wounded in a bombing near the rally of Akram Khan Durrani, who is running for a seat in parliament from the northwestern city of Bannu.

1:30 p.m.

Former Pakistani lawmaker Imran Khan, who hopes to become the next prime minister, has condemned a bombing near the election rally of a rival candidate, where four of the candidate’s supporters were killed.

Khan in a tweet says there seems to be a conspiracy to sabotage the July 25 vote. But he says the people of Pakistan will not allow anything to prevent “historic” elections from taking place.

Four people were killed and 20 others wounded in the bombing near the rally of Akram Khan Durrani, who is running for a seat in parliament from the northwestern city of Bannu. Durrani was about to leave the rally at the time.

Khan is facing tough competition from Durrani, who is the candidate of an alliance of religious groups.

12:10 a.m.

Pakistani police say a bomb near the election rally of an Islamist candidate running for a seat in parliament has killed at least three people and wounded 20 others.

Local police chief Rashid Khan says candidate Akram Khan Durrani, running for a seat from the northwestern city of Bannu, was not harmed in Friday’s bombing.

He said the bomb went off after Durrani finished his speech and was preparing to leave.

Durrani is running in the July 25 vote against popular former lawmaker Imran Khan.

He is a member of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, an election alliance of radical religious groups.

11:20 a.m.

Pakistani police say a bomb has exploded near the election rally of a senior politician from an Islamist party running for parliament from the northwestern town of Bannu.

Police say the explosion wounded 20 people and the candidate escaped unharmed.

Local police chief Rashid Khan says candidate Akram Khan Durrani had just finished his speech when the bomb exploded near his rally on Friday.

Durrani is running in the July 25 vote against popular former lawmaker Imran Khan.

He is a candidate of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, an election alliance of radical religious groups.

No one claimed responsibility, but the bombing came days after a suicide bomber dispatched by the Pakistani Taliban killed secular politician Haroon Ahmed Bilour and 20 others at his rally in the northwestern city of Peshwar.

8:30 a.m.

Officials say disgraced ex-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will be whisked away by helicopter to the federal capital of Islamabad when he returns to Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore from London to face a 10-year jail sentence on corruption charges.

Sharif is to return at 6 p.m. Friday from London where he has been visiting his ailing wife. He is to be accompanied by his daughter Mariam, who was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Sharif’s son-in-law is currently serving his one-year prison sentence.

Sharif is expected to appeal his conviction and seek bail.

Ahead of his return, police swept through Lahore, arresting scores of Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League party workers to prevent them from greeting him at the airport.