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A suicide attack at a Shiite mosque in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, on Friday killed at least 30 people and injured more than 130, police sources said.
A senior police official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the blast occurred shortly after Friday prayers, when mosques across the country are crowded with worshippers. The official added that the casualty toll was expected to rise further.
According to a security source, the attacker was intercepted at the mosque gate before detonating himself.
Medics and bystanders helped unload bloodied casualties from ambulances and private vehicles. Outside the mosque, armed security forces secured the site, which was stained with pools of blood.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has condemned the attack, vowing that those responsible would be identified and brought to justice.
The bombing comes as security operations across Pakistan intensified, with forces confronting insurgencies in the southern and northern border provinces.
Shiites, who make up 10 to 15 per cent of the predominantly Sunni population, have frequently been targeted in attacks.
Islamabad has previously accused separatist groups in Balochistan and Taliban-linked militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of using Afghan territory as a base for cross-border attacks.
Afghan authorities have repeatedly denied the allegations, straining bilateral relations and triggering regular clashes along the border.
Friday’s blast is the deadliest attack in Islamabad since November, when a suicide bombing outside a court killed 12 people and wounded dozens, marking the first major attack in the capital in nearly three years.
