At least 28 people are killed and 150 injured in suicide bomb attack on a mosque in Pakistan 

At least 28 people were killed and 150 were injured in a suicide bomb attack on a mosque in Pakistan. 

The bomber detonated his suicide vest as worshippers – including many policemen from nearby police offices – were praying inside the mosque in Peshawar, northwest Pakistan at around 8.30am. 

Officals say there are people buried under the rubble as the impact of the explosion collapsed the roof of the mosque. 

Most of the people who died were part of the police force who are to be the believed target of the attack. 

A suicide bomb attack collapses a  mosque roof and kills worshippers in Pakistan

At least 28 people were killed and 150 were injured

Security said the bomber was sitting in the front row of the mosque. 

Peshawar Police officer Muhammad Ijaz Khan told local media that between 300 and 400 police officials were present in the area at the time of the blast. 

Local police officer Zafar Khan said several of the wounded were listed in critical condition at a hospital and there were fears the death toll would rise. 

A survivor, 38-year-old police officer Meena Gul, said he was inside the mosque when the bomb went off. 

He said he doesn’t know how he survived unhurt. He could hear cries and screams after the bomb exploded, Gul said.

Rescuers scrambled trying to remove mounds of debris from the mosque grounds and get to worshippers still trapped under the rubble, police said. 

 Rescuers scrambled trying to remove mounds of debris from the mosque grounds and get to worshippers still trapped under the rubble

See also  Three people are stabbed near Liverpool Street Station in shocking broad daylight attack

The bomber detonated his suicide vest as some 150 worshippers – including many policemen from nearby police offices – were praying inside

The impact of the explosion collapsed the roof of the mosque, which caved in and injured many, according to Zafar Khan, a local police officer

Khan said several of the wounded were listed in critical condition at a hospital and there were fears the death toll would rise

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif in a statement condemned the bombing and ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment for the victims. 

He also vowed ‘stern action’ against those who were behind the attack.

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the bombing, calling it a ‘terrorist suicide attack’ in a tweet online.

The ex-PrimeMinister wrote: ‘My prayers & 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.’

Peshawar is the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan and has been the scene of frequent militant attacks.

In the capital, Islamabad Police issued a security high-alert and said security at all entry and exit points to the city had been increased.

Last April, a mosque in Imam Saheb was the target of another bombing, which killed dozens in Sunni Mawlawi Sekandar Mosque.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif in a statement condemned the bombing and ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment for the victims

 Emergency services rushed to the scene to help those who are injured 

Some worshippers are being treated outside the mosque and some are in critical condition are being rushed to hospital 

Emergency service have tapped off the mosque and the area 

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the bombing, calling it a ‘terrorist suicide attack’ in a tweet online

Rescuers scrambled trying to remove mounds of debris from the mosque grounds and get to worshippers still trapped under the rubble, police said

38-year-old police officer Meena Gul, who wasinside the mosque when the bomb went off, said several of the wounded were listed in critical condition at a hospital and there were fears the death toll would rise

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif in a statement condemned the bombing and ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment for the victims

In the capital Islamabad Police issued a security high-alert and said security at all entry and exit points to the city had been increased 

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing, said Saddique Khan, a senior police official in Peshawar who gave the latest casualty tolls, but the Pakistani Taliban have been blamed in similar suicide attacks in the past. 

The Pakistani Taliban, are known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, and are a separate group but also a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in neighbouring Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.

The TTP has waged an insurgency in Pakistan over the past 15 years, fighting for stricter enforcement of Islamic laws in the country, the release of their members who are in government custody and a reduction of the Pakistani military presence in the country’s former tribal regions.

The suicide bombing had catastrophic affects on the mosque and its worshippers as 

Brave onlookers and survivors risked their lives ot help save their fellow worshippers

The building is falling apart after a suicid bomber attack the mosque