ISLAMABAD: Officials reported that at least 31 people were killed and dozens more were hurt when a suicide bomber blew himself up inside an imambargah during Friday prayers in Islamabad’s Tarlai district.
According to police, terrorists connected to the “Fitna al-Khawarij” attacked the Imambargah Khadijat-ul-Kubra in the capital city.
Security forces are going after the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban-Pakistan (TTP) and recently shot and killed 24 terrorists who were part of the Indian proxy militant group.
Eyewitnesses told that the suicide bomber blew himself up after being halted at the mosque gate. They also said that the terrorists first shot at people and then bombed them.
Guards Clash with Terrorist at Imambargah Entrance
The gate to the imambargah is at least 30 meters from the main entryway. The guards at the religious building tried to stop the terrorist when he got to the main gate, but they ended up shooting at each other.
Then he ran inside for at least 20 meters, and while the prayer was going on, he blew himself up.
This imambargah is close to some residences. The suicide bomber used such strong explosives that they broke the windows of these homes.
During the shooting, security personnel were also hurt. The windows of the three-story imambargah have also broken.
After the terrible explosion, police officers, including those from the Pakistan Army and Rangers, blocked off the area so that rescue workers could start their work.
The deceased and injured people are being brought to hospitals, but the Pims administration says it can’t take in any more victims.
Because the hospitals in the capital are so busy, the injured are also being moved to hospitals in outlying districts of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Irfan Nawaz Memon, the Deputy Commissioner of Islamabad, announced that an emergency has been declared at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims), Polyclinic Hospital, and the Capital Development Authority (CDA) hospital.
The statement also said that assistant commissioners have been sent to different hospitals to make sure that the injured are getting the right care and treatment.
The administration of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) reported that at least 18 bodies were carried to the hospital, along with more than 78 injured people.
Officials at Benazir Bhutto Hospital in Rawalpindi reported that four injured people were taken to the hospital, and one of them died while being treated.
Emergency declared in Islamabad hospitals
In the meantime, the Federal Health Minister, Mustafa Kamal, declared an emergency in all federally run government hospitals in the capital.
He remarked, “The emergency services at PIMS and the Polyclinic are working well.”
Kamal also said that physicians, nurses, and paramedics will not be able to take time off.
He remarked, “The government is using all the resources it has to help the injured.”
The health minister called the suicide bombing “highly deplorable” and added that those who kill innocent people are “enemies of humanity.”
He said that carelessness in treating the injured would not be accepted.