At least 31 killed, more than 160 injured in Islamist bomb blast in Pakistan’s capital
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A bomb exploded at a Shia shrine on the outskirts of Pakistan’s capital during Friday prayers, killing 31 people and injuring at least 169, police said.
Islamabad police said the blast at the collapsed mosque was an attack and investigations are ongoing. Rescuers and witnesses said some of the injured were listed as critical. Television footage and images on social media showed police and civilians transporting the injured to nearby hospitals.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosion. The Pakistani Taliban and the Islamic State group have been blamed for previous attacks, as militants often target security forces and civilians across Pakistan.
Although attacks are rare in Islamabad, Pakistan has seen an increase in gang violence in recent months, largely blamed on Baloch splinter groups and the Pakistani Taliban, known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, which is a separate group, but allied to the Taliban in Afghanistan. A regional affiliate of the Islamic State group was also active in the country.
Shortly after the blast was first reported with a low number of casualties, Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Memon gave the latest, highest independent figures.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack in separate statements and offered condolences to the bereaved families. They ordered that all medical assistance be given to the injured.
“Targeting innocent civilians is a crime against humanity,” Zardari said. “The nation stands with the families affected in this difficult time.”
Sharif said he has ordered a full investigation.
“Those involved must be identified and punished,” he said.
The event with the Uzbek president is not affected
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also condemned the attack, and asked the authorities to ensure the provision of better medical care to the injured.
The attack took place while Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is on a two-day official visit, attended an event with Sharif. That event in Islamabad was a few kilometers away from the blast site.
The last such deadly attack in Islamabad was in 2008, when a suicide bomber attacked the Marriott Hotel in the capital, killing 63 people and injuring more than 250. In November, a fire broke out outside a court in Islamabad, killing 12 people and injuring 27.
The latest attack comes less than a week after the Baloch Liberation Army carried out multiple attacks in the insurgent-hit southwestern province of Balochistan, killing at least 50 people.
The military responded to the attack and killed more than 200 “terrorists,” according to the military.
