Peshawar: At least 16 people, including five police personnel, were killed and more than 50 injured in a suicide blast at a mosque near the old Police Lines in Kohat district of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province during Friday prayers, PTI reported on Friday, citing police and hospital officials.
The blast occurred at the mosque near the old Police Lines, about 60 kilometres southwest of Peshawar. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Chief Zulfiqar Hameed said an explosives-laden vehicle was driven into the mosque premises before the explosion. An exchange of fire with armed attackers followed, according to PTI.
Hameed said five police personnel and 11 civilians were among those killed. He also said another suicide blast took place near the Special Branch building during the ensuing exchange of fire.
The explosion caused part of the mosque's roof to collapse and left a crater outside the building, according to police.
Rescue operation under way
Rescue teams were sent to the site shortly after the blast and began searching the damaged mosque and surrounding area.
Rescue 1122 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa spokesperson Bilal Ahmad Faizi said rescue teams shifted injured people to nearby hospitals, according to PTI.
The District Headquarters Hospital in Kohat declared an emergency as casualties were brought in. Local reports later put the number of injured at more than 50.
The initial casualty figures have varied as rescue operations continued. An early report from Pakistan's Express Tribune, for example, said several people had been injured before authorities released the later death toll.
Who claimed responsibility?
According to PTI, the little-known Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan (IMP) claimed responsibility for the attack.
The group was formed in April 2025 as an alliance involving the Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group, Lashkar-e-Islam and Harkat Inqilab-e-Islami Pakistan. The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies documented the formation of the alliance in April 2025 and said the three groups had begun operating under the IMP banner.
However, the responsibility claim should be treated as a claim by the group and not independent confirmation of its role.
Attack unfolds near police complex
The location of the blast is significant because the mosque is near the old Police Lines complex, where security installations are located.
According to the account given by the provincial police chief and carried by PTI, the vehicle struck the gate before exploding, while firing broke out in the area. A second suicide attacker detonated near the Special Branch building during the confrontation.
Pakistan's Dunya News, citing the provincial police chief, separately reported that an armed encounter was under way inside the Police Lines compound after the explosions.
The authorities subsequently deployed additional police personnel around the area and restricted access to the site as rescue and security operations continued.
Pakistan's wider security challenge
The attack comes amid continuing militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a province that has remained one of the principal theatres of Pakistan's insurgency.
The province has faced attacks by several militant organisations, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and smaller alliances such as the Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan. The European Union Agency for Asylum's 2026 country report identifies Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as a major area of militant activity and notes that the Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group joined the IMP alliance in April 2025.
The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies has also documented the emergence of IMP as a new militant alliance challenging the dominance of the TTP in the country's militant landscape.
The latest attack is therefore unfolding against a broader backdrop of competing militant groups and sustained pressure on police and security installations in the province.
Political response
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the bombing and called for action against those responsible. Radio Pakistan reported that both leaders described the elimination of terrorism as essential to national security.
Sharif also sought a report from the authorities and directed officials to accelerate rescue and relief operations, according to the state broadcaster.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi and Chief Minister Sohail Afridi also condemned the attack and called for reports from the authorities.
The investigation into the blast, including the identity of the attackers and the circumstances surrounding the attack, is continuing.
(With inouts from PTI | Radio Pakistan | Dunya News | The Express Tribune | Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) | European Union Agency for Asylum | AP)
