Pakistani officials said Saturday that one of the suicide bombers who targeted a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa mosque was an Afghan national.
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The explosions killed at least 21 people—including 15 police officers offering Friday prayers at the mosque—and injured 103 others, with police personnel making up the majority of the casualties.
According to an investigator, in addition to the attacker identified as an Afghan citizen, efforts to identify a second bomber are ongoing. A joint probe team consisting of local police, the counter-terrorism department, the Elite Force, and security forces is currently investigating the attack.
During Friday's assault, the bombers drove an explosives-laden vehicle into the mosque before storming nearby police facilities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Kohat district.
Pakistani security authorities have repeatedly accused "Afghanistan-based militant groups" of threatening regional security through terrorism and cross-border infiltration. Islamabad has further accused the Afghan Taliban of harbouring elements linked to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)—allegations the Afghan Taliban denies.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa attack was claimed by Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, a little-known alliance formed last April that includes the Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, Harakat Inqilab-e-Islami Pakistan, and Lashkar-e-Islam.
(With PTI inputs)
