At least 52 people were killed and dozens were wounded Friday by a ‘suicide blast’ near a mosque in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, according to local media reports. Earlier, the death toll had stood at 34. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the explosion.
The blast happened in the Mustang district of the southwestern province during a religious gathering marking the birthday of Prophet Mohammed, Pakistan’s Dawn reported citing the assistant commissioner of the district.
Dr Saeed Mirwani, chief executive of a memorial hospital in Mutang, said dozens were being treated at the hospital while more than 20 injured people have been referred to Quetta. “The process of moving bodies and injured persons continues even now,” the hospital CEO told the Pakistani publication.
He clarified that the figure of people wounded in the explosion was earlier wrongly reported higher due to double entries from two hospitals. The correct number of the injured was 50.
Pakistan’s interior ministry said a blast was carried out by “terrorist elements”. “The attack on innocent people who came to participate in the procession of Eid Milad-ul-Nabi is a very heinous act,” the ministry said in a statement. Meanwhile, Balochistan’s Minister for Information Jan Achakzai posted on X, that the number of dead was rising.
“The enemy wants to destroy religious tolerance and peace in Balochistan with foreign blessings,” Achakzai said. “The explosion is unbearable.”
Former Pakistan prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said he was “deeply saddened by the cowardly attack. “May justice be swift for those responsible,” he said. Imran Khan’s PTI also condemned the incident and demanded that the injured be provided with quality treatment facilities.
Earlier this month, at least 11 people were injured in a blast in the same district. Pakistan faced the highest number of attacks in August this year, tallying the highest monthly strikes since 2014. The recent surges in militant has raised the stakes for security forces ahead of national elections scheduled for January next year.
According to an Islamabad-based think tank, Pakistan saw 22 suicide attacks in the first eight months of 2023, in which 227 people were killed and 497 injured. Balochistan, the country’s least populous province, is also home to several militant groups fighting for independence.
