Suicide Blast Kills 22 People In NW Pakistan

Islamabad, Feb 2, IRNA -- At least 22 people were killed and 40 others injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in Northwestern Pakistan on Friday, police said. The incident took place in Pat Bazaar of Hangu, 150 kilometres Southwest of Peshawar, the capital of insurgency-hit Khyber Pakhtounkhwa province. According to police, the bomber detonated his explosives as worshippers poured out after Friday (Jummah) prayers in the crowded Pat Bazaar area. ˈMost of the dead were coming out of a mosque in the marketplace after Friday prayers when the bomb went off,ˈ a senior police officer said. ˈIt was a suicide attack which targeted Shias, but Sunni Muslims also fell victim since their mosque and some shops were also very close to the site,ˈ District Police officer (DPO) Dr Muhammed Saeed said. ˈWe have found the head of the bomber, who came there on a motorbike,” he added. Security forces reached the blast site and cordoned off the area while rescue teams shifted the dead bodies and injured to the hospital. Nawab Hussain, a senior official at the District Headquarters Hospital, said more than 50 people had been brought to the hospital out of which 16, who were stated to be in serious condition, were shifted to hospitals in Kohat. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack./end