Pakistani villagers clean the interior of a mosque following a suicide bombing inside the premises in Akhurwall village, part of the semi-tribal northwest area of Darra Adam Khel, on November 5. A pair of mosque bombings killed more than 70 and caused considerable damage in Pakistan Friday. A Majeed/AFP Photo/Newscom
Karachi, Pakistan – “Two deadly bombings today in Pakistan targeted mosques and killed more than 70 worshipers, following an increasingly deadly pattern of Pakistani Taliban attacks on tribes that dare to defy its influence.
Pakistani Taliban claimed the responsibility.
“There is no right for traitors of mujahids and Islam to live,†read a message from the Taliban, quoting notorious leader Tariq Afridi. Mr. Afridi is the commander of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which is commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban and is linked with Al Qaeda.
The attack was seemingly designed for maximum impact, as the bomb was detonated in the middle of Friday prayers, and combined two increasingly common Taliban targets: the mosque and the jirga (council of tribal elders). The targeted mosque was inside the hujra, or congregation spot, of the tribal council leader.”