Frontier Eye Desk
Islamabad.
A suicide bomber struck outside Islamabad’s District Judicial Complex on Tuesday, killing at least 12 people and wounding 27 in the capital’s first such attack in over a decade.
The attacker, reportedly acting alone, detonated an explosive near a police vehicle during peak courthouse hours, sending debris and flames across the street.
Witnesses described chaotic scenes of bloodied victims, burning cars, and shattered windows. “It was like the ground shook; people were screaming and running everywhere,” said a lawyer inside the complex.
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility, saying the attack targeted “judges, lawyers, and officials enforcing Pakistan’s un-Islamic laws.” The TTP central leadership quickly denied involvement.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it a “reprehensible attack on civilians,” vowing justice, while Defense Minister Khawaja Asif warned that Pakistan was “in a state of war” amid rising militant violence.
Pakistani officials blamed foreign-backed extremist networks, including India, claims dismissed by New Delhi as “baseless.”
The bombing comes amid heightened cross-border tensions and ongoing concerns about Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan. Security has been stepped up across Islamabad as authorities launch investigations. International leaders, including from the U.S., China, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, condemned the attack.