Eight die,120 injured in Pak seminary blast

Peshawar, October 27

A powerful blast ripped through a religious seminary in northwest Pakistan’s Peshawar city on Tuesday, killing at least eight persons, mostly students, and wounding over 120 others, senior police officials said.

The blast occurred around 8:30 am at a local mosque, which also serves as a religious school in Dir Colony in interior Peshawar, while students were reading the Quran, Peshawar police chief Muhammad Ali Khan said.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister’s Advisor on Information Kamran Bangash and Spokesman of the LRH Hospital Asim Khan confirmed that eight persons have died and 124 others injured in the blast.

“Those who spread terror will never succeed in their mission,” Bangash said, maintaining the incident would be probed and the perpetrators would be brought to book.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast in the city, bordering war-torn Afghanistan.

A bag filled with explosive materials was kept close to a wall of the seminary by some unknown person which went off, superintendent of police in Peshawar city Waqar Azeem said.

He said the bag was believed to have had an IED device that went off.

An official from the Counter Terrorism Department said 4 to 5 kg explosives were used in the blast. Most of the students who died and were injured in the bast were aged between 7-11 years, the official said. Many of them were from Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the deadly blast and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.

“Deeply saddened by terrorist attack on madrassah in Peshawar. My condolences go to the victims families & prayers for early recovery of the injured. I want to assure my nation we will ensure the terrorists responsible for this cowardly barbaric attack are brought to justice asap,” he tweeted. PTI

5 kg explosives used

An official from the Counter Terrorism Department said 4 to 5 kg explosives were used in the blast. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bomb blast.

Imran assures action

My condolences go to the victims families & prayers for early recovery of the injured. I want to assure my nation we will ensure the terrorists responsible for this cowardly barbaric attack are brought to justice asap. — Imran Khan, Pakistan Prime Minister