At least 31 people have been reported dead and 169 injured after an explosion ripped through a Shi’ite Muslim mosque in Qasr-e-Khadijat-ul Kubra, in Pakistan's Islamabad during Friday prayers.
The explosion is believed to have been caused by a suicide bomber who arrived during afternoon prayers according to Islamabad Capital Territory Police Spokesperson Taqi Jawad. However he said that it was too soon to ascertain the nature of the blast.
Eyewitnesses said that the attacker detonated the bomb prematurely after being stopped at the gate, the Times of Islamabad reported. Reports also said that 'terrorists' first opened fire and then resorted to the bombing, GeoTV reported.
Police sources have said that the attack is linked to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Video footage of the blast site showed that the explosion caused heavy damage to the gate structure and shattered windows of nearby residential buildings.
Dead bodies and limbs were also seen in the videos.
The Islamabad Inspector General of Police declared a city-wide emergency following the attack.
The injured have been rushed to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) and Polyclinic Hospital. About 25 ambulances were dispatched to the site according to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.
Police and rescue 1122 personnel reached the site of the blast and initiaited initial rescue operations, Dawn reported. The exact cause of the blast is yet to be confirmed.
The incident have come just three months after a suicide blast outside a district sessions court building in Islamabad's G-11 area killed 12 people and injured 30.
This is a developing story.
