Kamal Ghorui
ISLAMABAD: A suicide blast at a Shia mosque in Islamabad killed at least 31 on Friday, with a police source saying more than 170 were wounded in the deadliest attack in Pakistan’s capital since the 2008 Marriott bombing that claimed 60 lives. The explosion at the Imam Bargah Qasr-e-Khadijatul Kubra mosque on the city’s outskirts occurred after Friday prayer, police said, adding the toll was “expected to rise”. “The attacker was stopped at the gate and detonated himself,” a security source said. No group claimed responsibility. Defence minister Khawaja Asif tweeted that the bomber had a history of travel to Afghanistan and blamed India for sponsoring the attack, without providing evidence. Condemning the bombing and condoling the deaths, MEA said it was unfortunate that “instead of seriously addressing problems plaguing its social fabric, Pakistan should choose to delude itself by blaming others.” It rejected the ‘baseless’ charge.
Eyewitness: First heard gunfire, then an explosion ripped through building
Muhammad Kazim, a 52-year-old worshipper, said an “extremely powerful” explosion ripped through the building as prayers were just starting. “During the first bow of namaz, we heard gunfire. And while we were still in the bowing position, an explosion occurred,” he said. South Asia analyst Michael Kugelman said on X the target suggested it was either the local affiliate of the IS or anti-Shia militants. AFP journalists at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences hospital saw several people, including children, being carried in on stretchers or by their arms and legs. Medics and bystanders helped unload victims with blood-soaked clothes from the back of ambulances and vehicles. At least one casualty arrived in the boot of a car. Friends and relatives of the wounded wept and screamed as victims – dead or alive – arrived at the hospital’s heavily guarded emergency ward. Another team of AFP journalists saw armed security forces outside the mosque, where pools of blood were visible on the ground. Yellow crime scene tape surrounded an investigation area, with shoes, clothing and broken glass scattered around the site. Videos shared on social media, which AFP was not able to verify immediately, showed several bodies lying near the mosque’s front gate. The attack comes as Pakistan’s security forces battle intensifying insurgencies in southern and northern provinces that border Afghanistan. Pakistan is a Sunni-majority nation but Shias make up between 10 and 15% of the population and have been targeted in attacks throughout the region in the past. Islamabad has said separatist armed groups in Balochistan, and the Pakistani Taliban and other Islamist militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near Islamabad, have used Afghan territory as a safe haven to launch attacks. Afghanistan’s Taliban govt has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s accusations. Bilateral ties have plummeted, with forces from both sides clashing along the border.
