The Pakistani authorities arrested 17 suspects in relation to the suicide bombing at a mosque in Peshawar city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
A suicide bomber blew himself at a mosque in Peshawar's high-security Police Lines on Monday. At least 101 were killed in the bombing over 200 were injured.
The outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has taken responsibility for the bombing. The TTP was until recently negotiating with the Pakistani government but it walked out of talks and declared an offensive against the Pakistani state.
Amid the arrests, Pakistani Army Chief General Asim Munir vowed zero tolerance for terror groups and directed his generals to eliminate the threat of militancy in Pakistan.
What we know of Peshawar blast?
A TTP suicide bomber was present in the front row during the Zuhr (afternoon) prayers in the Peshawar mosque. He blew himself, killing 101 people.
The explosion caused the roof to collapse on the worshippers, trapping several under the debris for a long time.
The Peshawar mosque blast is the deadliest attack on the security personnel in decades in Pakistan.
The bomber entered the highly secured mosque inside police lines where four layers of security were in place.
The suspected bomber was identified as 37-year-old Mohammed Ayaz from Mohmand district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Provincial Police chief Moazzam Jah Ansari said they are investigating the blast and how the bomber entered the highly fortified mosque in the Police Lines area.
He expressed the apprehensions that the bomber might have been residing in the police lines before the blast as there are family quarters too inside the police lines.
Ansari admitted grave security lapses by the police and ordered a comprehensive investigation into the blast.
Talking to the media here Tuesday, he said that the search process for entrance to police lines was limited only to the main gate of the police lines.
He said 10-12 kg explosives were used in the blast. Explosives in parts shifted to police lines as construction activities are in progress these days in police lines.
The arrests and Pakistani Army Chief's warning
The arrests have been made from close vicinity of the Police Lines area where the mosque is located and the suspects were shifted to interrogation cell for investigation, sources told PTI on condition of anonymity.
Pakistan's top generals have vowed that perpetrators of the Peshawar terrorist attack will be brought to exemplary justice.
General Munir, who presided over the 255th Corps Commanders’ Conference held at general headquarters in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, said that the military was determined to eliminate the threat of militancy from the country.
The army chief referred to the Peshawar mosque attack and said that "such immoral and cowardly acts cannot shake the resolve of the nation rather reinvigorate our determination to succeed in ongoing war against terror with zero tolerance for any terrorist entity," according to a statement issued by the army.
General Munir, who on Monday was in Peshawar along with Prime Minister Sharif following the suicide bombing, "directed all commanders to continue focus on anti-terrorism operations in coordination with intelligence and law enforcement agencies with renewed resolve till the time we achieve sustainable peace," the statement said.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah told parliament on Tuesday that 97 policemen were among the dead.
He said that past policies were responsible for terrorism plaguing the nation. "We created mujahideen but they have become terrorists," he said, referring to the Afghan war against the erstwhile USSR.
The blast shocked residents in Peshawar - once known as "the city of flowers".
The policemen took out a protest rally in Peshawar on Wednesday demanding fair and transparent investigation into the deadly bombing. The speakers of the rally demanded formation of a joint Investigation team to probe the blast.
They also demanded exemplary punishment to elements involved in the devastating bombing that killed innocent people, mostly policemen. The rally was largely attended by people from a cross section of the society.
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday urged all political forces to unite against terrorists who are targeting not a sect or particular segment of society but the entire nation.
"There is a need to create a consensus like (at the time of) the Zarb-e-Azb operation against this kind of terrorism. It is being hoped that the prime minister would take a step in this direction," the defence minister said.
Zarb-e-Azb was launched after the Peshawar school bombing of 2014 which had killed around 150 people, mostly students. During the operation, the security forces killed and expelled militants.
Asif was asked by journalists outside the parliament building about the possibility of any fresh operation against the militants.
He said that the high-level National Security Committee (NSC) would decide about launching a military operation to eliminate militancy.
"This is a decision that the National Security Committee will take. Such things can be decided at a forum (like the NSC) which is able to take such major decisions," he said.
Asif said that the latest bombing in Peshawar was no less a tragedy than the 2014 Army Public School massacre and a similar consensus was needed by politicians from all parties.
He also said that Pakistan had suffered over USD 126 billion in economic losses and 83,000 deaths including, armed forces personnel, police officials and others but the world had not acknowledged it.
He accused the previous government of Imran Khan of holding talks with the Taliban.
"Two years ago, we were briefed that we can talk to these people (the terrorists). Later, they were allowed to settle in the country," he said.
What is Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan?
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is an umbrella group of extremist Islamist groups formed in 2007.
The TTP seeks the establishment of an Islamic state in Pakistan after overthrowing the Pakistani state.
The US National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) notes, "TTP’s stated objectives are the expulsion of Islamabad’s influence in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and neighboring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province in Pakistan [and] the implementation of a strict interpretation of sharia throughout Pakistan...TTP leaders also publicly say that the group seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate in Pakistan that would require the overthrow of the Pakistani Government."
The TTP is also aligned with the Afghan Taliban and is also linked to Al Qaeda.
"As an ally of the Afghan Taliban, the TTP also fought the US-backed Afghan government prior to the latter’s defeat in August 2021. The TTP was founded in late 2007 by a group of Pakistani militants who had previously fought in Afghanistan alongside both the Taliban and al-Qaeda, and the group has maintained close ties to both organizations since," notes the think tank Counter Extremism Project (CEP).
The US NCTC notes, "TTP historically maintained close ties to senior al-Qa‘ida leaders, including al-Qa‘ida’s former head of operations for Pakistan."
Some earlier TTP attacks
The TTP has carried out a series of deadly attacks in Pakistan over the years.
Last year, a similar attack inside a Shia mosque in the Kocha Risaldar area in the city killed 63 people.
The TTP also attacked the Pakistani Army headquarters in 2009 and numerous military bases in the past. The TTP also carried out the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad.
In 2014, the Pakistani Taliban stormed the Army Public School (APS) in the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing at least 150 people, including 131 students. The attack sent shockwaves across the world and was widely condemned.
(With PTI inputs)
