Lahore, May 28
Terror struck Pakistan's heartland of Punjab today as heavily-armed Taliban gunmen wearing suicide vests stormed two mosques packed with Friday worshippers from minority Ahmadi sect here, killing over 80 people and injuring scores in the fist major attack in Lahore since March.

Among the dead in attacks on the mosques located in the upscale Model Town and the heavily-congested area of Garhi Shahu was a retired Lt General and a journalist, officials said.

Firing indiscriminately from automatic rifles and lobbing grenades, the militants ran into the two mosques situated miles apart in coordinated attacks, seized hostages and set off running battles with the police.

The gunmen from Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan's (TTP's) Punjab wing struck the jam-packed mosques, where over 1,500 worshippers had gathered for Friday prayers, at 1.45 pm local time, Geo TV reported.

The TTP-Punjab faction comprises radical elements of the banned outfits like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi known for its anti-Shia views.

"According to reports received from different hospitals, the death toll is more than 70," district administration chief Sajjad Bhutta told reporters outside Mayo Hospital.

Seventy eight persons were injured in the attacks, he said.