PESHAWAR: At least 28 people, most of them policemen were dead and more than 150 people injured, some of them critically, when a powerful suicide explosion ripped through a Mosque, located in Red Zone here on Monday. Hospital has appealed for blood donations in the wake of rising casualties.
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Talking to media , Commissioner Riaz Mehsud confirmed that some 28 policemen lost their lives in the blast. CCPO Peshawar said the central praying hall of the Mosque collapsed as a result of explosion.
According to initial reports gathered by MM News, a suicide bomber attending Zuhar prayer in Police Lines Mosque in the first row behind Imam blew himself up, injuring nearly 150 people. Imam of the Mosque (prayer leader) also lost his life.
The blast was so powerful that it was heard almost all across Peshawar, also damaging nearby buildings.
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Officials said a portion of the Mosque collapsed as a result of the powerful blast which took place just at the time of Zuhur prayers. Several policemen who were offering prayers including SP Noor Zaman were also injured in the explosion, while eye witnesses said many people were buried under the rubble.
Inside mosque after Blast in Police lines #Peshawar during Namaz. pic.twitter.com/uZf4wUMfFu
— Malik Ali Raza (@MalikAliiRaza) January 30, 2023
A local Jamat-e-Islami leader Inayatullah told media that he received call from a relative buried under the rubble, calling for help. He appealed to CCPO and Commissioner Peshawar to pull out of the people from under the rubble as soon as possible.
CCPO Peshawar told media that some 400 people were present at the time of Zuhur prayers, when the blast took place, and expressed apprehension that the number of casualties may climb.
An emergency had been declared across all hospitals in Peshawar, while security cordon was laid off around the blast site to collect the evidences.
Spokesperson for Lady Reading Hospital said more than 90 injured had been brought to them, where 28 of them succumbed to wounds while 15 of them were in critical condition.
