ISLAMABAD: A suicide bomber attacked a religious gathering south of the Pakistani capital yesterday killing 22 people and wounding dozens, officials said. Other sources put the death toll at 30.
Fedayeen Al-Islam, a little-known group believed to be linked to the Taleban, claimed responsibility for the attack on the Shiite mosque in Chakwal city.
Ayaz Amir, a journalist-turned-politician and a member of the National Assembly told Arab News terrorists were bent on driving a wedge between Shiites and Sunnis in the province. “They want to thwart our efforts to create sectarian harmony in Chakwal,” he said.
In yesterday’s attack, a suicide bomber set off his explosives at the entrance to the mosque during a religious congregation, said Nadim Hasan Asif, a top security official in Punjab.
He said the blast killed 22 people and injured more than 30.
“The suspected man was stopped at the entrance and pushed himself in and exploded,” Asif said. Another police officer, Nasir Khan Durrani, said the attack could have been much worse.
“Had he succeeded in exploding inside it could have caused a much bigger loss because there were hundreds of people inside,” Durrani said.
Chaudhry Nasrullah, the top health official in Chakwal, confirmed that 22 people were killed and that more than 50 were injured, a dozen of them critically.
Farid Ali, who left the mosque just before the attack occurred, said he looked back and saw the place covered in smoke and dust.
“I saw several people lying dead,” he told Express News TV. “There was blood everywhere.” Local television footage showed pools of blood on the road in front of the mosque.
Police investigators were shown collecting evidence, not far from a car and four motorcycles that were damaged by the blast.
— With input from agencies.
