A terrorist attack eaves dozens injured and several dead as Peshawar wakes up to horror
UPDATE: Death Toll rises to 17
PESHAWAR: Two policemen were killed and more than 90 others were injured on Monday in a strong suicide bombing inside a mosque in Peshawar’s Police Lines neighborhood, according to security and medical authorities.
Security officials claim that the suicide bomber was present in the front row during the prayers when he detonated himself, hurting numerous people.
The injured were taken to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital.
Two officers lost their lives in the explosion, and 90 people were sent to the hospital with injuries, according to a hospital spokesperson. According to physicians, more than 10 injured people were in critical condition.
According to some citizens, the blast took place around the location where the country’s opposition party, PTI, was going to hold a protest at 2 AM.
The attacks come as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a terrorist organization, continues to carry out operations against the state and Pakistani military as tensions are on the rise. After the Taliban seized control of Kabul in August 2021, Islamabad urged that the new government forbid the TTP from attacking Pakistan from Afghan territory.
In response, the Taliban offered Pakistan their assistance in negotiating a deal with the TTP that would allow for peace. As these negotiations progressed, a cease-fire agreement was quickly reached by both parties. Islamabad’s side in the negotiations was led by Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed, who at the time oversaw Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
It remains to be seen how Pakistan plans to counter the threat of cross-border terrorist attacks as it deals with an economic crisis the likes of something it has not seen in a long time.