Deaths rise to 27 in mosque bomb attack in Pakistan

Ittihad-ul-Mujahideen, known as a faction of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, has claimed responsibility for the attack while the death toll from the bomb blast at a mosque and subsequent gunfire in Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has risen to 27. The deceased include six attackers, 15 police personnel and six civilians, it has been learnt. At least 75 people have been injured in the incident.

An explosives-laden vehicle was used to carry out the attack at the gate of the mosque of the police headquarters in Kohat during Friday prayers around noon on Friday (September 18). A portion of the mosque was extensively damaged in the blast. After the attack, the armed assailants attempted to enter the main part of the police headquarters, leading to gunfire with the security forces.

The issue of cross-border militant activities has also come to the fore as the attack site is near the Afghanistan border. Pakistan has long been accusing the Taliban government of Afghanistan of assisting Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. However, the Afghan government has been rejecting this allegation.

Provincial police chief Zulfiqar Hameed has confirmed the suicide bomb attack. He informed that the attackers had tried to enter the compound of the police headquarters after the explosion.

Al Jazeera, citing relevant sources, has reported that most of the injured had gone to the mosque to offer Friday prayers. A wall of the police headquarters also collapsed along with the mosque in the powerful blast. The sound of the explosion was heard far from the site.

Security has been strengthened in the area after the attack and investigation is under way regarding those involved in the assault.