Suicide Bomber Kills 31 at Shiite Mosque in Islamabad

Islamabad — A suicide bomber attacked a crowded Shiite mosque in Pakistan’s capital during Friday prayers, killing at least 31 people and wounding 169 others is one of the deadliest attacks in Islamabad in nearly two decades. The blast occurred at the Khadija Tul Kubra mosque in the Tarlai Kalan area on the city’s outskirts. Security officials said the attacker was stopped at the gate but detonated his explosives anyway, sending a powerful shockwave through the packed prayer hall. Witnesses described scenes of chaos, with bloodied bodies, shattered glass, and debris scattered across the carpet

Islamabad — A suicide bomber attacked a crowded Shiite mosque in Pakistan’s capital during Friday prayers, killing at least 31 people and wounding 169 others is one of the deadliest attacks in Islamabad in nearly two decades.

The blast occurred at the Khadija Tul Kubra mosque in the Tarlai Kalan area on the city’s outskirts. Security officials said the attacker was stopped at the gate but detonated his explosives anyway, sending a powerful shockwave through the packed prayer hall.

Witnesses described scenes of chaos, with bloodied bodies, shattered glass, and debris scattered across the carpeted floor. Many of the wounded were in critical condition, and local residents rushed victims to hospitals in private vehicles as ambulances arrived. Children were among those killed and injured.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but authorities suspect militants who have previously targeted Pakistan’s Shiite minority, including the Pakistani Taliban or ISIS-Khorasan. The country has faced a recent surge in militant violence.

President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack as “a crime against humanity,” while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered a full investigation and pledged that those responsible would be brought to justice. “The nation stands with the affected families in this difficult time,” Zardari said.

The bombing took place as Uzbekistan’s president was attending an official event with Sharif in Islamabad, where security had already been heightened following a November suicide attack outside a court that killed 12 people.

Friday’s attack is the deadliest in Islamabad since a 2008 bombing at the Marriott Hotel that killed 63 people.

The attack comes days after the banned Baloch Liberation Army carried out deadly assaults in southwestern Pakistan, prompting a military operation that officials say killed more than 200 militants.