12 killed, 27 injured in suicide blast outside district court in Pakistani capital
ISLAMABAD: Twelve people were killed and 36 were injured on Tuesday in a suicide blast outside the district and sessions court building in Islamabad’s G-11 area, according to officials
The explosion took place near the entrance of a district court in Islamabad’s G-11 sector while it was crowded with a large number of litigants.
“As of now, 12 people have been martyred and 27 have been injured,” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters.
“We are already treating the injured, our teams are in the hospitals already. We are providing them the best possible facilities.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the attack was carried out by India-backed groups “Fitna Al-Khawarij and Fitna Al-Hindustan,” referring to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group that Islamabad says operates from safe havens in Afghanistan, with backing from India. Both nations deny this.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi briefed the media outside the Islamabad court, confirming that a suicide blast occurred at 12:39pm.
He said 12 people were killed and several injured, with the wounded receiving medical care under the supervision of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Naqvi stated that the attacker waited outside the court for nearly 12 minutes, attempted to enter, and then detonated near a police vehicle after failing to get inside.
He assured that identifying the bomber was the top priority and would be achieved within hours.
Calling the incident “not just another bombing,” the minister said it occurred in the heart of Islamabad and was being investigated from multiple angles. He vowed that those responsible would be brought to justice.
Naqvi added that the Army, Rangers, and police were ensuring the security of upcoming international events in the capital. Videos circulating online showed flames and thick smoke rising from a burnt vehicle near a security checkpoint.
The latest attack comes a day after militants including a suicide bomber tried to storm a cadet college in Wana, a city in the northwestern South Waziristan district, triggering a gunbattle that killed at least two of the attackers.
On Monday, Pakistani security forces said they had killed 20 Pakistani Taliban insurgents in raids on hideouts in the northwest region bordering Afghanistan as tensions between the two countries escalated. The army said eight militants were killed Sunday in North Waziristan, a former TTP stronghold in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and 12 others were killed in a separate raid in the Dara Adam Khel district, also in the northwest.
Meanwhile, Pakistan and Afghanistan have blamed each other for the collapse of a third round of peace talks in Istanbul over the weekend.
The negotiations, facilitated by Qatar and Turkiye, began last month following deadly border clashes that killed dozens of soldiers and civilians on both sides.
TTP is separate from but allied with the Afghan Taliban and has been emboldened since the Afghan Taliban’s return to power in 2021. Many TTP leaders and fighters are believed to have taken refuge in Afghanistan since then. TTP often claims attacks in Pakistan, which has seen a surge in militant attacks in recent years.
The court attack also takes place a day after a deadly car blast in India’s capital New Delhi killed at least eight and injured 20 people. An Indian officer said on Tuesday that police are probing the blast under a law used to fight “terrorism.”
The incident occurred as international events were being hosted in the capital, including the Inter-Parliamentary Speakers’ Conference and the 6th Margalla Dialogue, while a cricket match between the Green Shirts and Sri Lanka was also being held in Rawalpindi.
