- By Ajeet Kumar
- Fri, 14 Mar 2025 04:21 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
In a major development, an explosion rocked a mosque in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during Friday prayers, leaving JUI district leader Abdullah Nadeem and three others injured, according to police reports. District Police Officer Asif Bahader told Dawn.com that the blast, caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) hidden in the mosque's pulpit, occurred at 1:45 pm along the Azam Warsak Bypass Road at Maulana Abdul Aziz Mosque.
JUI leader injured
Abdullah Nadeem, a prominent JUI figure, suffered severe injuries in the attack, while three fellow JUI members—Rehmanullah, Mullah Noor, and Shah Behran—sustained lighter wounds, police confirmed in a statement. All victims were promptly transported to the District Headquarters Hospital for treatment.
DPO Bahader stated that law enforcement teams were dispatched to the scene to gather evidence, adding, “The investigation is ongoing to determine further details.”
Several mosque targetted
Mosques in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have repeatedly been targets of violence, especially during Friday prayers when attendance peaks. Just last month, a suicide bombing at the Darul Uloom Haqqania seminary in Nowshera claimed six lives, including JUI-S leader Maulana Hamidul Haq Haqqani, and injured 15 others.
On January 30, 2023, a devastating explosion tore through a mosque in Peshawar’s Police Lines, a high-security zone, killing at least 59 people and injuring 157, with the death toll later climbing to 101, according to the KP health department. The attack occurred as 300 to 400 worshippers, primarily police officers, were gathered for prayers, collapsing part of the prayer hall.
In another incident in 2022, a suicide bomber struck the busy Jamia Masjid Koocha Risaldar in Peshawar’s old city, killing a policeman at the entrance before detonating inside the main hall, where worshippers had assembled for Friday prayers.
