A powerful explosion ripped through a mosque in southwest Pakistan during Friday evening prayers, killing a senior police officer and at least 13 civilians, police said. The bombing wounded another 20 worshipers in the city of Quetta, the capital of the restive Balochistan province, said the city's police chief Abdur Razzaq Cheema.
The slain police officer was the likely target of the attack, but authorities were still investigating, said a second police official, Mohammad Ajmal. Police said an improvised explosive device had been planted at the mosque inside a seminary in the city. It exploded during evening prayers on Friday, the second bombing in Quetta this week. "So far, 13 bodies and 20 injured have been brought here," Dr Wasim Baig, spokesman for a local hospital told Reuters, adding that many of the injured were in serious condition.
A senior police officer, Haji Amanullah was among the dead. His son was killed by unknown persons last month. Police and hospital officials said the death toll from the bombing could rise as some of the wounded were in critical condition. Prime Minister Imran Khan and Balochistan's chief minister, Jam Kamal Khan, condemned the attack. In a statement, Pakistan's military said soldiers were at the scene of the attack to assist civil authorities.
No claim for responsibility
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. But the attack came just days after a roadside bomb in Quetta hit a paramilitary force vehicle, killing two troops. Last May, a bombing at a mosque in Quetta killed two people, including the prayer leader, and wounded 28 worshipers. In August, a powerful bomb exploded inside a mosque during Friday prayers on Quena's outskirts.
Although Pakistani militants often carry out such attacks, Balochistan province is also the scene of a low-level insurgency by militants demanding more autonomy and a greater share in the region's natural resources such as gas and oil. Pakistan's government says it has quelled the insurgency, but violence has continued.
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