PESHAWAR: At least 59 people were martyred and 158 injured, mostly policemen, in a suicide blast during Zuhr prayers at a mosque in Peshawar’s Police Lines on Monday.

According to police, rescue sources and eyewitnesses, the suicide bomber standing in the first row blew himself up, said security officials. They added the explosion took place around 1:40pm as Zuhr prayers were being offered. Initial reports said 27 of the deceased were policemen and a mosque prayer leader was among them. The explosion damaged the parts of the mosque. Panic gripped the area soon after the blast.

It was a powerful explosion, said eyewitnesses. There was smoke everywhere after the blast. Police and rescuers shifted the bodies and injured to the Lady Reading and other hospitals in the city. Emergency was imposed in Peshawar’s hospitals.

The administration of the Lady Reading Hospital appealed to the masses for blood donations to treat the injured. The authorities cordoned off the area while the law enforcement agencies personnel collected the evidence from the crime scene. Caretaker Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Muhammad Azam Khan imposed a medical emergency in all hospitals of Peshawar. He instructed rescue organizations to speed up relief activities.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, former president Asif Ali Zardari, former prime minister Imran Khan, former NA speaker Asad Qaiser and others have strongly condemned the attack. The Lady Reading Hospital released the list of 30 people martyred during a suicide blast in Peshawar.

The martyred include: Inspector Doran Shah, Zohaib Nawaz of Dir Lower, Maqsood Ahmed, Rashida Bibi, Rafiq of Lakki Marwat, constable Naseem Shah, Liaqat of Charsadda, driver Amjad, Shehryar, Liaqat of Lakki Marwat, Mohammad Ali of Mian Gujar, Sahibzada, Zahir Shah, Tilawat Shah, Waseem Shah, Gul Ashraf, Hayatullah Khattak, Zubair, Abdul Hameed, Usman, Khalid Khan of Charsadda, Rafiq Khan, Inspector Irfan Khan, FC personnel Shahab of Charsadda, Abdul Wadud, FC personnel Ahmad Khan, Liaqatullah Shah of Lakki Marwat, Atif Mujeeb, Rizwanullah of Charsadda, and Hazrat Umer.