KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Pakistani authorities say the suicide bomber who attacked a Shia mosque in Islamabad on Friday was a Pakistani national who received militant training at an Istishhadi training center in Afghanistan’s Kunar province.
Initial investigations, cited by Pakistani media, identified the attacker as Yasir Khan Yasir. Officials said he stayed in Afghanistan for around five months before returning to Pakistan, was inclined toward the Salafi school of thought, and trained at the Mansoor Istishhadi training center in Kunar province.
The attack occurred during Friday prayers at the Khadijah-tul-Kubra Shia mosque in Shehzad Town, in eastern Islamabad, when the bomber detonated explosives inside the crowded building. At least 31 worshippers were killed and nearly 170 others injured, many critically, marking one of the deadliest terrorist incidents in the Pakistani capital in recent years.
The Islamic State group (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack and released an image showing the attacker holding a firearm, his face covered and eyes blurred. The group has a history of targeting Shia Muslims in Pakistan and Afghanistan, whom it regards as “heretics.”
Following the attack, senior Pakistani officials, including Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry, accused Afghan Taliban authorities and India of involvement. Asif wrote on X that the attacker’s travel to and from Afghanistan revealed “collusion between India and Afghanistan.” Chaudhry said the bomber was a Pakistani citizen who had made several trips to Afghanistan.
Both the Taliban and India rejected the accusations. Taliban Ministry of Defense spokesperson Inayat Khwarazmi called the claims “illogical” and “baseless,” urging Pakistani authorities to address internal security lapses rather than blaming neighbors. India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal condemned the attack and expressed condolences to the victims’ families while dismissing Pakistan’s claims as “pointless” and an attempt to divert attention from domestic problems.
The attack drew widespread international condemnation. The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia, China, France, Germany, and several regional and Muslim-majority countries denounced the bombing and expressed sympathy for the victims’ families. UN agencies and human rights groups also called for stronger protections for religious minorities and enhanced security measures in Pakistan.
The bombing comes months after another suicide attack outside a district court in Islamabad’s G-11 area in November 2025, which killed 12 people and injured more than 30. That attack was claimed by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), highlighting ongoing security challenges in the capital.
