Worshipers killed, injured in mosque

Peshawar: At least 20 people have been killed and 90 injured in a suicide bombing at a mosque in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar, Pakistani police said.

Bombers struck the interior of a mosque Monday morning where about 150 people were praying, according to police sources and witnesses. The death toll could rise as many of the injured are listed as in critical condition.

The bomber detonated a suicide vest as worshipers, including many officers from a nearby police station, were praying inside. The blast caused the roof of the mosque to collapse, injuring many people as they caved in, said local police officer Zafar Khan.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan.

Police officer Meena Gul, 38, who survived, said he was inside the mosque when the bomb exploded. He said he doesn’t know how he survived unscathed. Shouts and screams were heard after the bomb exploded. Gul added that there were more than 150 worshipers inside the mosque when the bomb exploded.

Khan said rescuers were trying to transport the injured to a nearby hospital. He said some of the injured were listed in hospital in critical condition, and the death toll could rise.

Allegations of such attacks most often apply to the Pakistani Taliban, who have claimed similar bombings in the past.

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APs