UPDATE: Death toll continues to rise after suicide bombing in Peshawar, Pakistan

UPDATE: The death toll continues to rise after the suicide bombing in Peshawar, Pakistan on Friday, March 4.

THE death toll continues to rise after the suicide bombing in Peshawar, Pakistan on Friday, March 4. It had been feared that multiple people would be confirmed dead after the terrorist attack, and those fears have sadly been confirmed.

Police and hospital officials have now said that 30 people were killed in the blast at a Shi’ite mosque in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar. The devastating explosion occurred during Friday morning prayers in the busy Qisa Khwani Bazar.

The death toll is expected to rise substantially as many of the injured are in critical condition, police and hospital officials said. Earlier it was reported that around 20 people were taken to Lady Reading Hospital, although that number has since risen.

“We are in a state of emergency and the injured are being shifted to the hospital,” police officer Mohammad Sajjad Khan told Reuters.

According to the news outlet, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, one of the deadliest in years on Pakistan’s Shi’ite minority.

Senior police official Ijaz Khan confirmed that at least 30 had been killed and that it was a suicide bombing. He told Reuters that two armed men arrived near the mosque on a motorcycle and were stopped for a search by police on duty outside.

“They opened fire on the police…and entered the mosque,” he said.

Videos from the tragic incident show people being carried out of the Shi’ite mosque in Peshawar with missing limbs and covered in blood.

The area has a number of markets and is usually packed around the time of Friday prayers, according to locals. Police and rescue teams are believed to still be at the scene.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.