In yet another incident of suicide attack in Pakistan, at least 22 persons, including four children, were killed and 35 injured when a Shia congregation was targeted in Chakwal, about 50 km south-east from here, on Sunday.
The bombing, believed to be sectarian in nature, was part of the twin-menace of sectarian and terrorist violence the country is facing. Eight troops of the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary were killed in Islamabad on Saturday in a suicide blast at a check post.
The suicide bomber detonated explosives while he was being frisked by voluntary guards at the gate of a Shiite mosque. About 1,500 people were present at that time in the Imambargah (prayer hall) of the mosque, located in the centre of Chakwal town.
The blast ripped apart the bodies of the victims, leaving a horrific scene of scattered limbs and blood all around the site of the incident. Most of the wounded were shifted to hospitals in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Several vehicles, too, were damaged.
Witnesses said the suicide bomber was aged about 16 or 17 years and was dressed in black. TV channels beamed footage of blood and body parts spattered on the wall near the gate of the Imambargah. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.
