An attack on a mosque in Pakistan, 31 people were killed

Police officials reported that a suicide bomber detonated a bomb after approaching the gates of the Shiite mosque in the Tarlai area of ​​the city, and eyewitnesses told the BBC that gunshots were heard after the explosion. A state of emergency was declared in the city, the hospitals began accepting the wounded and a call was sent for blood donations.

The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shahbaz Sharif, condemned the incident and called for a thorough investigation and the immediate identification of those responsible for the attack. Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Memon told X that the death toll stood at 31, with the number of injured at 169. Pictures from local hospitals showed the injured being brought in by private vehicles and ambulances, with an AFP news agency photographer saying he saw dozens of people arriving at the hospital.

Photos from the mosque afterward show shoes strewn on the floor, shattered glass and people sitting among the rubble. An eyewitness, Zahir Abbas, was inside the Khadijatul Kobra Mosque praying when he first heard the sound of bullets. “After that, we bowed and then bowed, then there was an explosion,” he told BBC Urdu, “after that there were injuries everywhere.” Abbas, who said he “lost his mind” in the moments after the explosion, was eventually rescued by emergency forces and taken to a hospital, where he was quickly released. “Fortunately, I wasn’t injured much,” he said.

The caretaker of the mosque, Seyed Ashfaq – who lives next door – also heard a shot, and started running towards the mosque to help. “When I got there there was already an explosion,” he told the BBC. “Bodies were lying everywhere, some were missing arms, some were missing legs. We took the most injured in our car (to the hospital).”

Attacks are relatively rare in the capital, although one of them in November left 12 dead. Another 27 were injured in the explosion, outside a court. Last year was also Pakistan’s deadliest in more than a decade, with combat-related deaths jumping 74 percent, with militants accounting for more than half of the deaths, according to a new report released by an independent research institute. The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) said violence in Pakistan left 3,413 dead – up from 1,950 in 2024 – and 2,138 killed by militants.