At least 83 people were killed and 57 injured in a suicide bombing at a mosque in Pakistan.
The terrorist detonated his suicide belt as a large number of worshipers were praying inside, including many police officers from nearby police stations.
Local police officer Zafar Khan said the explosion caused the mosque’s roof to collapse and injure dozens of people.
Officials initially said at least 59 people were killed. A hospital spokesman later confirmed that the death toll had risen to 83.
Workers and volunteers carry an injured person to a hospital in Peshawar, Pakistan.
According to local police, no one immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion in Peshawar, the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.
Local media published a photo of people gathering at the collapsed wall of the mosque.
One survivor, 38-year-old police officer Mina Gul, said he was inside the mosque at the time of the explosion and that he did not know how he managed to escape unscathed.
Ambulances remove the wounded from the bomb site in Peshawar
He said he heard screams and screams after the bombing, adding that more than 150 worshipers were inside the mosque at the time of the bombing.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif condemned the blast in a statement before ordering authorities to provide the best possible treatment for the victims.
He also promised “strong measures” against the perpetrators.
Former Prime Minister Imran Khan called the explosion a “suicide attack”.
“My prayers and condolences to the families of the victims,” the ex-premier wrote on Twitter.
“It is imperative that we improve our intelligence gathering and properly equip our police forces to deal with the growing threat of terrorism.”
The Pakistani Taliban are usually suspected of such attacks in the country, as they have reported similar bombings in the past.
The Pakistani Taliban, known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, are a separate group but are also close allies of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021 when US and NATO troops were in the final stages of withdrawal. out of the country after 20 years of war.
People carry the wounded after the explosion
The group has led an insurgency in Pakistan for the past 15 years, fighting for greater enforcement of Islamic law, the release of its members in government custody, and the reduction of the Pakistani military presence in the country’s former tribal regions.
