A suicide bomber attacked a mosque inside a police compound in northwest Pakistan on Monday.
Summary
A suicide bomber attacked a mosque inside a police compound in northwest Pakistan on Monday. At least 44 people were killed, and another 150 people were wounded in the attack.
- The attack targeted police officers and most of the casualties were members of law enforcement. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the bombing.
- The bombing rocked the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar on Monday. Peshawar hospitals were flooded with casualties, with officials saying many were in “critical condition.”
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack. Sharif said the attackers “have nothing to do with Islam.” “The entire nation is standing united against the menace of terrorism,” Sharif continued.
- The New York Times reported Peshawar had been experiencing “a period of relative calm” in the weeks leading up to the bombing that killed at least 44 people. More than 300 worshippers were in the mosque at the time of the blast.
- Per The Guardian, the explosion caused the roof and one wall of the mosque to collapse, contributing to the high casualty toll. The bomber had apparently been standing in the front row of the congregation before he detonated his explosive device.
- According to CNN, the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said it was “revenge” for the death of a militant sworn to the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), or the Pakistani wing of the Taliban, last year.
- Fox News reported that it’s unclear how the bomber was able to get inside the walled police compound where he detonated his explosives. The compound is located in a high-security zone with other government buildings and contains the headquarters of Peshawar’s police.
- Rescuers used heavy machinery and their hands to dig through the rubble to rescue the injured, according to the Wall Street Journal. Fleets of ambulances were spotted at the scene, and Peshawar’s main hospital made appeals for blood donors.
- Breitbart noted Peshawar is close to the tribal areas along the Afghan border where the presence of militants appears to be on the rise since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan after the botched US withdrawal in August 2021.
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© Dominic Moore, 2023
