Police officer killed in suicide blast at mosque in northwest Pakistan

People Stand and watch the damaged mosque after a suicide bomber attack inside a roadside mosque in the Khyber district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, of Pakistan, on July 25, 2023. (AP)

• The incident took place in Khyber district, causing the mosque to collapse due after the explosion
• A police official said no worshippers were inside the mosque when the suspect went there to hide

PESHAWAR: A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a roadside mosque when a police officer tried to arrest him after a chase in northwestern Pakistan near the Afghan border on Tuesday, killing the officer, police said.

The bombing took place in Khyber, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the mosque collapsed because of the impact of the explosion, police official Saleem Khan said.

He said no worshippers were inside the mosque when the suspect went there to hide.

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in militant violence since last year when the Pakistani Taliban, who are known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, ended a months-long cease-fire with the government.

The Pakistani Taliban are a separate group but an ally of the Afghan Taliban. They have become emboldened since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as US and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.