10 die in Peshawar imambargah blast

Islamabad, Jan.18 : At least ten people have been reported killed and another 25, including two lady constables, injured when a teenage suicide bomber detonated explosives at an imambargah in Peshawar on Thursday night.

Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier Javed Cheema was quoted as saying that the suicide bomber was 15 or 16-years-old and blew himself up after entering the gate leading to the prayer hall.

The incident occurred at around 6.55 p.m. at the Mirza Qasim Baig Imambargah, which is located in Peshawar's Jangi Mohallah area, where around 90 people were present at the time.

Peshawar Police Chief Tanvirul Haq Sipra confirmed that seven people had been killed and another 18 injured.

According to the Daily Times, a bearded man wearing a white jersey first opened fire on the gathering with an assault rifle before detonating himself.

North West Frontier Province (NWFP) Inspector General of Police, Sharif Virk, was quoted by Geo TV as saying that 10 kilograms of explosives and three kilograms of ball bearings were used in the blast. The intensity of the blast was such that it damaged a wall of the imambargah, and led to a scattering of human body parts at the scene, he added.

Shoes, caps and black flags littered the floor, while the interior of the mosque was scorched. People staged angry protests at the site after the blast and chanted anti-government slogans, only to later disperse peacefully.

The police immediately cordoned off the area and security was stepped up to counter a possibel fallout from the blast.

ANI