By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: At least 10 people were killed and more than a dozen injured when an explosion ripped through a Shia mosque during Friday prayers in Islamabad, police said, in the latest attack to hit Pakistan’s capital amid a surge in militant violence.
The blast struck the Imam Bargah in the Tarlai area of Shehzad Town, sending rescue teams scrambling to the scene where body parts were strewn across the courtyard, according to initial reports from police and local media.
Islamabad Capital Territory Police Spokesperson Taqi Jawad told reporters it was too early to determine if the explosion was caused by a suicide bomber or a planted device, adding that forensics teams had been dispatched to investigate. Police and Rescue 1122 personnel reached the site and initiated rescue operations, shifting the injured to nearby hospitals, Jawad said.
An emergency was imposed at the federal capital’s Polyclinic, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), and CDA Hospital to handle the casualties. A PIMS spokesperson confirmed to local newspaper Dawn that an emergency had been enforced at the hospital on the directives of its executive director. The main emergency, orthopaedic, burn centre, and neurology departments were activated, the spokesperson added.
Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the blast at the Imambargah in Tarlai, expressing deep grief and sorrow over the deaths and extending condolences to the families of the victims, according to a statement from his office. Sharif prayed for the elevation of the ranks of the martyrs and for patience and strength for their families, the statement said.
The prime minister met Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and directed that a full investigation into the incident be carried out and that those responsible be identified immediately. Sharif instructed that the injured be provided with the best possible medical facilities and ordered the Health Minister to personally oversee their treatment. “Those responsible for the blast must be identified and brought to justice with exemplary punishment,” the prime minister said. “No one will be allowed to spread extremism and unrest in the country.”
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred as worshippers gathered for Friday prayers at the mosque, also known as Tarlai Imambargah. The incident comes less than three months after a suicide blast outside a district and sessions court building in Islamabad’s G-11 area on November 11, 2025, that killed 12 people and injured more than 30.
It also follows a spate of deadly attacks in Balochistan province days earlier, carried out by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which claimed the lives of 36 civilians, including women and children, along with 22 security and law enforcement personnel. A day prior, Pakistan’s military announced the conclusion of Operation Raddul Fitna 1, eliminating at least 216 terrorists in various coordinated engagements and clearance operations.
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