Lahore: A suicide bomber targeted a Shia
worship hall at Sargodha in Pakistan`s Punjab province on Sunday, killing at least one person and injuring over 20 others.
The attacker entered the "imambargah` and detonated
his suicide vest near a spot where worshippers perform
ablutions, witnesses said.
Scores of people had gathered at the imambargah for
evening prayers at the time of the attack.
Sargodha district police chief P A Nasir told
reporters the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber.
"The guards of the imambargah tried to stop the bomber
but he managed to enter the hall," he said.
At least one of the injured succumbed to his injuries,
officials said.
The injured were rushed to nearby hospitals. The
condition of three of them was described by officials as
serious.
Witnesses said the bomber who targeted the Darul Uloom
Mohammediya was a teenager.
The imambargah is located in a busy commercial area of
Sargodha that is usually packed with shoppers on weekends.
Police cordoned off the imambargah and asked people to
clear the area.
An emergency was declared in hospitals in Sargodha and
announcements were made from mosques for people to donate
blood for the injured.
Officials told PTI that security and intelligence
agencies had recently alerted Punjab`s Home Department that
militants could target shrines, imambargahs and mosques that
attract large numbers of people.
Nearly 50 people were killed when two suicide bombers
targeted the Data Darbar shrine in Lahore on July 1.
PTI
