Peshawar, Eight Killed and more than One-Hundred-Ten Injured in Blast at a Madrassah

A madrassah, named Jamia Zuberi, in the Dir Colony of Peshawar suffered a massive explosion on Tuesday morning which took away almost eight lives and left more than one hundred and ten people injured. 

According to Mohammad Asim, the spokesperson of Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital, out of eight dead people, four were students of the madrassah, aged between 20 and 25. 

Senior police official, Waqar Azim said that the blast took place when the Quranic class was underway. He further said a bag full of explosives was left inside the madrassah. 

Among the injured were two teachers, confirmed another senior police official, Mohammad Ali Gandapur. 

Mansoor Aman, Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations), while confirming the explosion, said that the initial reports have suggested that the explosion was carried out with the help of an improvised explosive device (IED) and that five kilograms of explosives were used in the blast. 

The police have cordoned off the damaged area and are onto collecting evidence, he added. 

No group, so far, has taken up the responsibility for the blast. 

According to the LRH spokesperson, seventy injured and seven dead bodies were brought to the facility initially when later one of the injured people succumbed to his wounds, and the death toll raised to eight. 

He said that that the medical facility had declared an emergency and immediate medical attention was being provided to the injured. The situation at the emergency ward was being supervised by the hospital’s director. 

As per the reports, some of the injured were also taken to Naseerullah Khan Babar Hospital, Khyber Teaching Hospital, and Hayatabad Medical Complex. Two injured were taken to HMC and KTH, thirty-seven to NKBH, and seventy-two to Lady Reading Hospital. 

Health Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Taimur Saleem Jhagra made a quick visit to the place of the blast. While talking to the reporters he said that the main focus at the moment was to provide the best treatment possible to the injured so that they could recover fast. 

Inspector-General of Police (IG) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sanaullah Abbasi said that the police will ensure the security of the city and that they are trying to make the city as secure and safe as possible. All dynamics would be investigated by the police, added the IG. 

President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Arif Alvi, in a tweet condemned the attack and said that it is equally saddening and shocking for all. He instructed the authorities to apprehend the terrorists who committed this heinous crime and to give them the best exemplary punishment. He prayed for the dead to rest in peace and for the injured to recover soon.