At least 25 people were killed and 120 others, mostly policemen, were injured when a strong suicide bomber tore through a mosque on Monday during afternoon prayers in the high-security area of Peshawar, Pakistan.
During the Zuhr (afternoon) prayers, a suicide bomber who was sitting in the front row at the mosque in the Police Lines neighborhood blew himself up, according to security officials.
Deputy Commissioner Shafiullah Khan told the media that 25 people were killed and 120 others injured in the powerful blast.
“I am here at the scene and rescue work is ongoing,” Peshawar Deputy Commissioner Shafi Ullah Khan said. “More bodies are being taken out. Currently, our priority is to save people buried under the debris.”
The eyewitness reported that the injured were mostly police officers.
The attack has not been claimed by any extremist group. However, the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, has carried out a number of suicide assaults against security officers in the past.
پشاور میں پولیس لائنز کی مسجد میں نماز ظہر کے دوران دھماکے کے نتیجے میں ابھی تک کی اطلاعات کے مطابق 50 افراز زخمی ہیں۔#Peshawar pic.twitter.com/XxRn1dFA7u
— Khurram Iqbal (@khurram143) January 30, 2023
Shazad Kaukab, Superintendent of Police (Investigation), Peshawar, whose office is next to the mosque, informed the media that the blast happened as he entered the mosque to say prayers. He stated that he was fortunate to have survived the attack.
The bomber entered the highly fortified mosque behind police lines, where four layers of protection were in place.
A police official, claimed that a section of the mosque fell, and it was thought that several people were underneath it.
He added that the injured are being sent to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital. Thirteen of those injured, according to hospital authorities, were in a critical state.
🚨 #BreakingNews 🚨
— Kreately.in (@KreatelyMedia) January 30, 2023
Pakistan: Bomb blast inside a mosque in Police Lines, Peshawar.
16 police personal killed.
More than 100 injured#Peshawar BLAST pic.twitter.com/ULtxPAjfvC
In Peshawar’s hospitals, an emergency has been declared. In order to help the victims, the hospital has asked the public to give blood.
Following the Peshawar explosion, security has been stepped up in other major cities, including Islamabad.
Azam Khan, the acting chief minister, condemned the attack and extended his sympathies to the grieving families.
Imran Khan, a former prime minister, strongly condemned the mosque terrorist attack.
“My prayers and condolences go to victims’ families. It is imperative we improve our intelligence gathering & properly equip our police forces to combat the growing threat of terrorism,” the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf tweeted.
63 people were killed in a similar incident at a Shia mosque in the city’s Kocha Risaldar area last year.
