Suicide bomber kills at least 34 at Pakistan mosque

A suicide bomb blast at a mosque jammed with worshipers killed at least 34 people and injured 100 Friday in Pakistan's restive tribal region along the Afghan border, one of the deadliest recent attacks in the country.

At least 400 people filled a mosque near the town of Jamrud in the Khyber tribal district when the bomber walked into the hall and detonated his explosives, police and witnesses said. Khyber, the gateway into Afghanistan for NATO supply trucks, remains a stronghold for Taliban militants waging an insurgency against the U.S.-allied Pakistani government.


Worshipers who appeared at the mosque for Friday prayers were on their way out when the bomber showed up, witnesses said. Samiullah, who goes by one name, said a young man — whom he believed to be the bomber — cried out just before the blast.

Village elders said there was no security at the mosque, making it easy for the bomber to walk in undetected.

Pakistani television footage showed the walls and ceiling of the mosque pockmarked with shrapnel. Bloodied prayer caps were piled on shelves. Most of the wounded suffered burns. Many were taken to local hospitals in pickup trucks or cars because authorities lacked enough ambulances.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

In the past, Taliban militants and allied groups have struck at mosques in northwest Pakistan, particularly those believed to be affiliated with anti-Taliban tribes and militias. Last fall, a suicide bomber attacked a mosque in the village of Darra Adam Khel, where villagers had formed a militia to resist Islamist militants. At least 60 people were killed in that attack.

Khyber is one of several areas in northwest Pakistan where the Pakistani military has launched offensives in an attempt to bring an end to Taliban-engineered suicide bomb attacks and acts of terrorism that have ravaged the country in recent years. But many militants have been able to flee the military operations well in advance and find safe haven in other areas within the tribal belt.