ISLAMABAD: At least 31 people were killed and over 169 injured in a suicide attack during Friday prayers at a Shia religious centre in Islamabad on Friday.
The powerful explosion, which was heard from a far distance, took place at Khadijatul Kubra mosque-cum-imambargah in the Tarlai area of Islamabad, the police said in a statement.
The suicide bomber was reportedly stopped at the gate of the Imambargah, but he blew himself up, they said.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion.
However, police sources said that the attacker was a foreign national and had links with Fitna al Khwaraji, a term used for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Geo News reported that the terrorist first opened fire and then detonated himself. TV footage showed multiple bodies lying on the floor surrounded by shards of glass and debris.
Police and rescue services reached the site and started rescue operations.
The army troops and Rangers have cordoned off the area, and security operations are underway in and around the site of the blast.
Citing a spokesperson for Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, the Express Tribune newspaper reported that an emergency was declared at the hospital.
The injured are being transferred to PIMS and Polyclinic for treatment, it added.
The attack came when Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev was visiting Pakistan. He arrived on a two-day state visit on Thursday.
President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas condemned the attack.
"Targeting innocent civilians is a crime against humanity," Zardari said.
Strongly condemning the attack, Abbas said that targeting places of worship is a direct attack on humanity, religion and social values, which cannot be tolerated under any circumstances.
According to police officials, the nature of the explosion was being probed, but the explosion seems to be a suicide attack.
Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry visited the Pakistan Institute of Medical Science (PIMS) hospital in Islamabad and met the injured.
Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry strongly condemned the attack in a post on social media platform X, expressing grief over the loss of lives in the "cowardly act".
"Such acts of terrorism cannot dampen the morale of the nation. The need of the hour is that we all stand united for peace, tolerance, and stability, and express solidarity with law enforcement agencies," the minister stressed.
Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also condemned the attack and asked authorities to ensure the provision of best medical care to the wounded persons arriving at different hospitals in the city.
The latest attack comes around three months after a suicide bombing outside a district court in Islamabad in November last year. 12 people were killed in the blast.
(With inputs from PTI, AP)