Victims of Mosque Suicide Bombings in Pakistan Continue to Increase: Crowded with 400 worshipers during the explosion, perpetrators bypass strict security

Victims of a suicide bomb explosion at the Peshawar mosque, Pakistan. (Twitter/@LandofPakistan)

JAKARTA - A suspected suicide bomb explosion rocked a heavily fortified mosque packed with worshippers in Peshawar, Pakistan on Monday, killing 59 people, including 27 police officers.

The alleged attacker had crossed several barricades manned by security forces to enter the complex housing a police and counter-terrorism station in the volatile northwestern city of Peshawar, police said.

"It was a suicide bombing," Peshawar Police Chief Ijaz Khan told Reuters, as reported on January 31.

He explained that the hall of the mosque was full of 400 worshipers when the explosion occurred. The majority of the 170 injured people are in critical condition.

The bomber is believed to have detonated the explosives he was carrying as hundreds of people were lining up to pray, officials said.

"We have found traces of explosives," Khan told reporters, adding that a breakdown was obvious, as the bomber had slipped through the safest area of ​​the complex.

I strongly condemn Peshawar blast . The surge in terrorist attacks is alarming. Hostile elements out to destabilise Pakistan. It is time for Afghan Taliban to distance themselves from TTP . Pakistan reserves the right to take action against the TTP safe heavens in Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/tOd99mB2TQ

— Masud Ahmad Khan (@MasudAKhan6) January 30, 2023

Investigations are underway into how the attackers penetrated the elite security cordon and whether there was any insider assistance.

Meanwhile, hospital official Mohammad Asim in a statement said the death toll rose to 59 after several people succumbed to their injuries. Meanwhile, police said 27 of those killed were police officers.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, the worst in Peshawar since March 2022 when an ISIS suicide bombing killed at least 58 people at a Shia Muslim mosque during Friday prayers.

The local Taliban known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, an umbrella group for Sunni and sectarian militant groups, denied responsibility.

Peshawar, which sits on the edge of Pakistan's tribal districts bordering Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, is a frequent target of militant groups, including Islamic State and the Pakistani Taliban.

"Tehreek-e-Taliban has nothing to do with this attack," the TTP said in a statement.

It is understood the bombing occurred a day before the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) mission to Islamabad to begin talks on opening up funding for the South Asian country's economy, which is experiencing a balance of payments crisis.