Staff Reporter
Quetta
At least 15 people, including DSP Haji Aman Ullah, were martyred and 20 were injured in a blast inside a mosque in Satellite Town area during Friday evening prayers, Balochistan Home Minister Zia Langove confirmed.
According to Quetta Deputy Inspector General Abdul Razzaq Cheema and hospital sources, Deputy Superintendent of Police Amanullah and the mosque’s imam were among the deceased.
Police officials said that an improvised explosive device had been planted at the mosque located in Ghousabad neigh-bourhood. The device exploded during Maghreb prayers, DIG Cheema said.
The rescue teams arrived soon to shift the injured to the Civil Hospital for medical treatment and the law enforcement agencies cordoned off the area to initiate an investigation into the incident.
Police said a month ago, DSP Amanullah’s son was martyred in a firing incident. Amanullah was deployed at the Police Training College located on Saryab Road.
Meanwhile, the Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations, Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor, tweeted that Frontier Corps personnel had reached the blast site and carried out a search operation along with police.
“Every possible assistance be given to police and civil administration,” the tweet quoted Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa as saying, adding that “those who targeted innocents in a mosque can never be true Muslim.” The emergency has been declared at all hospitals of Quetta while the authorities have directed the doctors and paramedical staff to be present at their respective duty places. Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan and Home Minister Ziaullah have condemned the blast and expressed sorrow over the loss of precious lives.
