{"id":3578,"date":"2023-01-31T16:05:05","date_gmt":"2023-01-31T16:05:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=3578"},"modified":"2023-03-23T18:54:10","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T18:54:10","slug":"pakistan-denounces-mosque-explosion-as-security-breach-kills-100","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/analysis\/defense\/terrorism\/pakistan-denounces-mosque-explosion-as-security-breach-kills-100\/2023\/01\/31\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan denounces mosque explosion as ‘security breach’, kills 100"},"content":{"rendered":"
PESHAWAR,<\/span> Pakistan<\/span> (AP)<\/span> –<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> authorities<\/span> Tuesday<\/span> tried<\/span> to<\/span> find<\/span> out<\/span> how<\/span> a<\/span> suicide<\/span> bomber<\/span> carried<\/span> out<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> country’s<\/span> deadliest<\/span> militant<\/span> attacks<\/span> in<\/span> years.<\/span> Peshawar.<\/span> More<\/span> than<\/span> 100<\/span> people<\/span> were<\/span> killed<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> explosion.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Monday<\/span> morning’s<\/span> bombing,<\/span> which<\/span> injured<\/span> at<\/span> least<\/span> 225<\/span> people,<\/span> has<\/span> raised<\/span> concerns<\/span> among<\/span> officials<\/span> about<\/span> a<\/span> major<\/span> security<\/span> breach,<\/span> while<\/span> the<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> Taliban,<\/span> a<\/span> major<\/span> anti-government<\/span> militant<\/span> group,<\/span> has<\/span> stepped<\/span> up<\/span> attacks<\/span> on<\/span> police<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> military<\/span> in<\/span> particular.<\/span> raised<\/span> alarm.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>It<\/span> was<\/span> unclear<\/span> who<\/span> carried<\/span> out<\/span> the<\/span> bombing.<\/span> A<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> Taliban<\/span> commander<\/span> known<\/span> by<\/span> the<\/span> acronym<\/span> TTP<\/span> claimed<\/span> responsibility<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> attack,<\/span> but<\/span> a<\/span> spokesman<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> group<\/span> later<\/span> dismissed<\/span> the<\/span> TTP<\/span> from<\/span> the<\/span> massacre,<\/span> saying<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> not<\/span> their<\/span> policy<\/span> to<\/span> attack<\/span> mosques.<\/span> rice<\/span> field.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>More<\/span> than<\/span> 300<\/span> worshippers<\/span> were<\/span> praying<\/span> in<\/span> the<\/span> Sunni<\/span> mosque,<\/span> with<\/span> more<\/span> approaching,<\/span> when<\/span> the<\/span> bomber<\/span> set<\/span> off<\/span> his<\/span> explosives<\/span> vest,<\/span> officials<\/span> said.<\/span> The<\/span> blast<\/span> blew<\/span> off<\/span> part<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> roof,<\/span> and<\/span> what<\/span> was<\/span> left<\/span> caved<\/span> in,<\/span> injuring<\/span> many<\/span> more,<\/span> according<\/span> to<\/span> Zafar<\/span> Khan,<\/span> a<\/span> police<\/span> officer.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Talat<\/span> Masood,<\/span> a<\/span> retired<\/span> army<\/span> general<\/span> and<\/span> senior<\/span> security<\/span> analyst<\/span> said<\/span> Monday’s<\/span> suicide<\/span> bombing<\/span> showed<\/span> \u201cnegligence.\u201d<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cWhen<\/span> we<\/span> know<\/span> that<\/span> Tehreek-e-Taliban<\/span> Pakistan<\/span> is<\/span> active,<\/span> and<\/span> when<\/span> we<\/span> know<\/span> that<\/span> they<\/span> have<\/span> threatened<\/span> to<\/span> carry<\/span> out<\/span> attacks,<\/span> there<\/span> should<\/span> have<\/span> been<\/span> more<\/span> security<\/span> at<\/span> the<\/span> police<\/span> compound<\/span> in<\/span> Peshawar,\u201d<\/span> he<\/span> told<\/span> the<\/span> AP,<\/span> using<\/span> the<\/span> official<\/span> name<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> Taliban.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Kamran<\/span> Bangash,<\/span> a<\/span> provincial<\/span> secretary-general<\/span> with<\/span> the<\/span> opposition<\/span> Pakistan<\/span> Tehreek-e-Insaf<\/span> party,<\/span> called<\/span> for<\/span> an<\/span> investigation<\/span> and<\/span> blamed<\/span> the<\/span> instability<\/span> on<\/span> the<\/span> government<\/span> of<\/span> Prime<\/span> Minister<\/span> Shahbaz<\/span> Sharif.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> bombing<\/span> comes<\/span> as<\/span> Pakistan<\/span> is<\/span> contending<\/span> with<\/span> political<\/span> and<\/span> economic<\/span> crises<\/span> from<\/span> a<\/span> disputed<\/span> election<\/span> and<\/span> from<\/span> unprecedented<\/span> floods<\/span> last<\/span> summer<\/span> that<\/span> killed<\/span> 1,739<\/span> people,<\/span> destroyed<\/span> more<\/span> than<\/span> 2<\/span> million<\/span> homes,<\/span> and<\/span> at<\/span> one<\/span> point<\/span> submerged<\/span> as<\/span> much<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> third<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> country.<\/span> Sharif<\/span> visited<\/span> a<\/span> hospital<\/span> in<\/span> Peshawar<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> bombing<\/span> and<\/span> vowed<\/span> a<\/span> “tough<\/span> crackdown”<\/span> on<\/span> those<\/span> behind<\/span> the<\/span> attack.<\/span> On<\/span> Tuesday,<\/span> he<\/span> refused<\/span> to<\/span> criticize<\/span> the<\/span> government<\/span> and<\/span> called<\/span> for<\/span> unity.<\/span> “My<\/span> message<\/span> to<\/span> all<\/span> political<\/span> forces<\/span> is<\/span> unity<\/span> against<\/span> anti-Pakistani<\/span> elements.<\/span> We<\/span> can<\/span> fight<\/span> political<\/span> later,”<\/span> he<\/span> tweeted.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Shortly<\/span> after<\/span> the<\/span> explosion,<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> Taliban<\/span> commander<\/span> Sarbakh<\/span> Momand<\/span> claimed<\/span> responsibility<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> attack<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> Twitter<\/span> post.<\/span> But<\/span> hours<\/span> later,<\/span> TTP<\/span> spokesman<\/span> Mohammad<\/span> Khurasani<\/span> said<\/span> that<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> not<\/span> the<\/span> group’s<\/span> policy<\/span> to<\/span> attack<\/span> mosques,<\/span> seminaries<\/span> and<\/span> religious<\/span> sites<\/span> and<\/span> that<\/span> those<\/span> who<\/span> took<\/span> part<\/span> in<\/span> such<\/span> actions<\/span> could<\/span> be<\/span> punished<\/span> under<\/span> TTP<\/span> policy.<\/span> said<\/span> there<\/span> is.<\/span> His<\/span> account<\/span> did<\/span> not<\/span> mention<\/span> why<\/span> the<\/span> TTP<\/span> commander<\/span> claimed<\/span> responsibility<\/span> for<\/span> the<\/span> bombing.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>The<\/span> Islamic<\/span> State<\/span> of<\/span> Khorasan<\/span> province,<\/span> a<\/span> regional<\/span> offshoot<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Islamic<\/span> State<\/span> group<\/span> and<\/span> rival<\/span> of<\/span> the<\/span> Taliban,<\/span> has<\/span> also<\/span> been<\/span> behind<\/span> deadly<\/span> attacks<\/span> in<\/span> Pakistan<\/span> in<\/span> recent<\/span> years.<\/span> All<\/span> in<\/span> all,<\/span> violence<\/span> has<\/span> increased<\/span> since<\/span> the<\/span> Afghan<\/span> Taliban<\/span> seized<\/span> power<\/span> in<\/span> neighboring<\/span> Afghanistan<\/span> in<\/span> August<\/span> 2021<\/span> and<\/span> the<\/span> US<\/span> and<\/span> her<\/span> NATO<\/span> forces<\/span> withdrew<\/span> from<\/span> Afghanistan<\/span> after<\/span> two<\/span> decades<\/span> of<\/span> war.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Earlier<\/span> this<\/span> month,<\/span> the<\/span> Pakistani<\/span> Taliban<\/span> claimed<\/span> that<\/span> one<\/span> of<\/span> their<\/span> members<\/span> shot<\/span> dead<\/span> two<\/span> of<\/span> his<\/span> intelligence<\/span> officers,<\/span> including<\/span> the<\/span> director<\/span> of<\/span> Inter-Services<\/span> Intelligence’s<\/span> counter-terrorism<\/span> division.<\/span> Security<\/span> officials<\/span> said<\/span> on<\/span> Monday<\/span> that<\/span> a<\/span> shooter<\/span> had<\/span> died<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> shootout<\/span> near<\/span> the<\/span> Afghan<\/span> border.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Afghanistan’s<\/span> Taliban-led<\/span> foreign<\/span> ministry<\/span> said<\/span> it<\/span> was<\/span> “sad<\/span> to<\/span> learn<\/span> that<\/span> many<\/span> people<\/span> lost<\/span> their<\/span> lives”<\/span> in<\/span> Peshawar,<\/span> and<\/span> condemned<\/span> the<\/span> attack<\/span> on<\/span> followers<\/span> as<\/span> a<\/span> violation<\/span> of<\/span> Islamic<\/span> teachings.<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
<\/form>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) – Pakistani authorities Tuesday tried to find out how a suicide bomber carried out one of the country’s deadliest militant attacks in years. Peshawar. More than 100 people were killed in the explosion. Monday morning’s bombing, which injured at least 225 people, has raised concerns among officials about a major security breach, […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3579,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[252,779,2406,2418,2425],"tags":[36,56,451,930,931,932],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/M.webp","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3578"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3580,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578\/revisions\/3580"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/be\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}