Dozens of worshippers are killed and 150 injured in suicide bomb attack on a mosque in Pakistan 

Dozens of worshippers have been killed and 150 injured in a suicide bomb attack on a mosque in Pakistan during afternoon prayers.

The bomber detonated his suicide vest as hundreds of worshippers – including many police officers – were praying inside the mosque in Peshawar, northwest Pakistan on Monday. 

At least 47 people were killed in the attack, with scores of victims buried under rubble as the impact of the blast caused the mosque’s roof to collapse. 

Most of the people who died were part of the police force who are to be the believed target of the attack.

A suicide bomb attack collapses a  mosque roof and kills worshippers in Pakistan

Dozens of people were killed in the suicide bombing and 150 were injured

Rescue workers carry the remains of the blast victims from the debris of a damaged mosque after a blast inside the police headquarters in Peshawar on Monday

Police officers shift their injured colleague to a hospital after the blast at a Mosque to a hospital in Peshawar on Monday

An injured victim of a suicide bombing talks on his mobile phone after getting initial treatment outside a hospital in Peshawar, Pakistan, on Monday

A frantic rescue mission is now underway at the mosque as emergency personell search for survivors amongst the rubble.

‘Many policemen are buried under the rubble,’ said Peshawar police chief Muhammad Ijaz Khan, who estimated between 300 and 400 officers usually attended prayers at the mosque.

‘Efforts are being made to get them out safely,’ he said.

Bloodied survivors emerged limping from the wreckage, while bodies were ferried away in ambulances as the rescue operation continued.

Security officials said the bomber was sitting in the front row of the mosque. 

It is not clear how the attacker was able to slip into the walled compound, which houses the northwestern city of Peshawar’s police headquarters and is itself located in a high-security zone with other government buildings.

Peshawar Police officer Muhammad Ijaz Khan told local media that between 300 and 400 police officials were present in the area at the time of the blast. 

Local police officer Zafar Khan said several of the wounded were listed in critical condition at a hospital and there were fears the death toll would rise. 

A survivor, 38-year-old police officer Meena Gul, said he was inside the mosque when the bomb went off. 

He said he doesn’t know how he survived unhurt. He could hear cries and screams after the bomb exploded, Gul said.

Shahid Ali, a policeman who survived, said the explosion took place seconds after the imam started prayers.

‘I saw black smoke rising to the sky. I ran out to save my life,’ the 47-year-old said. 

‘The screams of the people are still echoing in my mind,’ he added. ‘People were screaming for help.’

Rescue workers at the scene of a blast at a Mosque, in Peshawar, on Monday. The blast ripped through the walls and roof of the mosque (pictured)

A frantic rescue mission is now underway at the mosque as emergency personell search for survivors amongst the rubble (pictured)

A police officer, who was injured in a blast at a Mosque is helped by worshippers to make it to a hospital in Peshawar, on Monday

Police officers help injured victims of the suicide bomb attack to a hospital in Peshawar

Volunteers carry a coffin of a man, killed in the suicide bombing inside a mosque, at a hospital, in Peshawar, Pakistan, on Monday

Security officials and rescue workers search bodies at the site of suicide bombing in Peshawar on Monday

The impact of the explosion collapsed the roof of the mosque, which caved in and injured many, according to Zafar Khan, a local police officer

Siddique Khan, a police official, said the death toll has rose to 34, and the dead included Noor-ul-Amin, the prayer leader. He said the attacker blew himself up while among the worshippers. 

Peshawar police chief Ijaz Khan said at least 150 were wounded. A nearby hospital listed many of the wounded in critical condition, raising concerns the death toll could still rise. 

Sarbakaf Mohmand, a commander for the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack on Twitter. 

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif condemned the bombing and ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment for the victims. 

He also vowed ‘stern action’ against those who were behind the attack.

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the bombing, calling it a ‘terrorist suicide attack’ in a tweet online.

Khan wrote: ‘My prayers & condolences go to victims families.

‘It is imperative we improve our intelligence gathering & properly equip our police forces to combat the growing threat of terrorism.’

Peshawar is the capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan and has been the scene of frequent militant attacks since November, when the Pakistani Taliban ended their cease-fire with government forces. 

This was one of the deadliest attacks on security forces in recent years.

Last April, a mosque in Imam Saheb was the target of another bombing, which killed dozens in Sunni Mawlawi Sekandar Mosque.

Injured people are being carried to ambulances at the site of the suicide bomb attack in Peshawar on Monday

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif in a statement condemned the bombing and ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment for the victims

Some worshippers are being treated outside the mosque and some are in critical condition are being rushed to hospital 

In the capital Islamabad Police issued a security high-alert and said security at all entry and exit points to the city had been increased 

In the capital, Islamabad Police issued a security high-alert and said security at all entry and exit points to the city had been increased.  

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack on Twitter.

The militant group, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, has waged an insurgency in Pakistan over the past 15 years. 

It seeks the stricter enforcement of Islamic laws, the release of their members who are in government custody and a reduction in the Pakistani military presence in areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that it has longed used as its base. 

The group is separate from but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops pulled out of the country after 20 years of war.

The suicide bombing had catastrophic affects on the mosque and its worshippers as 

Brave onlookers and survivors risked their lives ot help save their fellow worshippers

The building is falling apart after a suicid bomber attack the mosque

The government’s truce with the TTP ended as Pakistan was still contending with unprecedented flooding that killed 1,739 people, destroyed more than 2 million homes, and at one point submerged as much as one third of the country. 

Mohmand, of the militant organization, said a fighter carried out the attack to avenge the killing of Abdul Wali, who was widely known as Omar Khalid Khurasani, and was killed in neighboring Afghanistan’s Paktika province in August 2022.

Cash-strapped Pakistan is currently facing a severe economic crisis and is seeking a crucial installment of $1.1 billion from the International Monetary Fund – part of its $6 billion bailout package – to avoid default. Talks with the IMF on reviving the bailout have stalled in the past months.

Sharif’s government came to power last April after Imran Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament. Khan has since campaigned for early elections, claiming his ouster was illegal and part of a plot backed by the United States. Washington and Sharif have dismissed Khan’s claims.