An explosion hits a Shiite mosque on Islamabad’s outskirts, wounding dozens

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A massive explosion ripped through a Shiite mosque on the outskirts of the capital on Friday, wounding dozens, rescue officials and witnesses said.

Islamabad police said the blast at the sprawling mosque was an attack and that an investigation was underway.

Television footage and social media images showed police and residents transporting the injured to nearby hospitals. Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack, and asked authorities to ensure the provision of best medical care to the wounded persons, who were arriving at the city’s different hospitals.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion, but suspicion is likely to fall on militants such as the Pakistani Taliban or the Islamic State group, which has been blamed for previous attacks on Shiite worshippers, a minority in the country. Militants often target security forces and civilians across Pakistan.

In November, a suicide bomber had struck outside a court in Islamabad, killing 12 people.

The latest attack comes nearly a week after the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army carried out multiple attacks in insurgency-hit southwestern Balochistan province, killing about 50 people.

Security forces responding to those attacks also killed more than 200 “terrorists,” according to the military.