At least 30 people have been killed and over 130 have been injured after a massive bombing ripped through a mosque on the outskirts of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, on Friday.
A senior police officer told AFP, the casualty toll was 'expected to rise further.'
Islamabad police said the blast at the sprawling mosque was an attack and that an investigation was underway.
Islamabad blast
The explosion took place at Imambargah Khadijah al-Kubra in the Tarlai area of Islamabad, the Dawn reported.
Following the blast, images from the site showed bloodied bodies lying on the carpeted floor surrounded by shards of glass, debris, and panicked worshippers. Dozens more wounded were lying in the garden outside the imambargah as people called for help, mentioned the Pakistani media outlet.
Television footage and social media images showed police and residents transporting the injured to nearby hospitals.
Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack, and asked authorities to ensure the provision of best medical care to the wounded persons, who were arriving at the city's different hospitals.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
The bombing comes as Pakistan's security forces grapple with intensifying insurgencies in both the southern and northern provinces of the country that border Afghanistan, reported AFP.
