Islamabad, Pakistan
CNN
—
A suicide bomber who targeted a mosque inside a police compound in Peshawar and killed more than 80 people was a Pakistani Taliban member disguised as a police officer, a senior official said Thursday.
A suspect arrived at a police checkpoint on a scooter on Monday and asked a constable for directions to the mosque, according to Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa state police chief Moazzam Jah Ansari. CCTV footage showed him being let through because he was wearing a uniform.
“This was a suicide bomber and we tracked his movements. He was wearing a police uniform,” Ansari said.
“We are getting closer to the network. All our martyrs’ lives will be avenged,” he added.
Authorities had previously estimated the death toll at more than 100, but some bodies were counted twice, Ansari said. 217 people were injured in the explosion.
The development came a day after police in Peshawar arrested several suspects.
Police believe the bombers used 12 kilograms (26.5 pounds) of explosives.
Video footage shows walls, glass windows and panels of the destroyed mosque destroyed by a powerful explosion.
Paramedics searched for survivors, but most of those found under the rubble were already dead, officials said.
Monday’s blast marked a deteriorating security situation in Peshawar, capital of the rebellious Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan, and the scene of frequent attacks by the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP). I am emphasizing it.
TTP sent conflicting messages about whether it was behind the attack.
TTP officials Sarbakaf Mohmand and Omar Mukaram Khurasani previously said the blast was “revenge” for the death of TTP militant Khalid Khorasani last year.
However, the TTP’s main spokesperson, Muhammad Corasani, later denied the group was involved.
The attack came at a difficult time for Pakistan. Pakistan is also suffering from a cost of living crisis and an economic downturn exacerbated by last year’s devastating floods.
