At least 31 people have been killed and 169 injured in an explosion at a mosque during Friday prayers in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, officials say.
According to police, a suicide bomber detonated a device after approaching the gates of the Shia mosque in the Tarlai area of the city. Eyewitnesses have told the BBC the blast was preceded by the sound of gunfire.
An emergency was declared as hospitals began to receive the wounded, with an appeal sent out for blood donations.
Condemning the incident, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep grief and called for a thorough investigation into the attack.
In separate statements, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari said targeting innocent civilians is a crime against humanity, while Defence Minister Khawaja Asif suggested India and Afghanistan were behind the attack.
Afghanistan's Taliban government described these comments as regrettable, saying the Pakistani minister made accusations without credible evidence.
Witnesses recounted the chaos and horror of the blast, with many describing bodies and injured individuals lying across the mosque floor. Emergency vehicles ferried the injured to hospitals, where demand for blood donations surged.
The incident in Islamabad occurs against the backdrop of increased violence across Pakistan, with a recent report indicating a 74% increase in combat-related deaths over the past year. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) recently claimed responsibility for a series of attacks, highlighting ongoing security challenges in the region.
