Suicide bomber kills 31 mourners at funeral in Pakistan’s northwest

A suicide bomber killed 31 people and wounded dozens more in an attack at a funeral for a member of a tribe that has raised an anti-Taliban militia in Pakistan’s northwestern district of Lower Dir.

The attack took place today in the Samarbagh area of Lower Dir, where more than 100 mourners were attending the funeral of a tribal member. The suicide bomber detonated his vest among the crowd as they were preparing to offer funeral prayers.

“The funeral was that of an ordinary villager, but some participants of the funeral who belonged to a local tribal volunteer force opposed to the Taliban may have been the target,” the chief of police for Lower Dir told BBC.

Thirty-one people were killed and 35 more have been wounded, some critically, Reuters reported.

While no group has claimed credit for the attack, the Taliban is the likely culprit. A group of Taliban fighters under the command of Swat leader Mullah Fazlullah is known to operate in the region. Also, Qari Zia Rahman, the dual-hatted al Qaeda and Taliban commander, operates on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border area. These commanders, along with Faqir Mohammad, have been launching numerous raids on both sides of the border; many of the attacks have targeted government forces and anti-Taliban militias [see LWJ report, Pakistani Taliban kidnap 25 boys in northwest, for more details].

Today’s attack in Lower Dir is the second in the district in three days. On Sept. 13, the district president of the Awami National Party, which has opposed Taliban rule, was killed in an IED attack in the Maidan area of Lower Dir.

In another attack on Sept. 13, Taliban forces under the command of Tariq Afridi killed four children and a school bus driver on the outskirts of Peshawar, the provincial capital. The attack targeted members of a tribe that opposed Taliban rule.

“This was to teach them a lesson and we will continue to carry out attacks wherever and whenever possible no matter if it is a school or a school bus,” Mohammad Afridi, a Pakistani Taliban spokesman told The Associated Press.

Taliban and allies target religious sites

Over the past four years, the Taliban and allied Pakistani terror groups have shown no reservations about striking inside mosques and other religious sites, as well as during religious processions and events. There have been 35 major attacks on mosques and other Islamic institutions in Pakistan since December 2007, according to information compiled by The Long War Journal.

One of the most brazen attacks took place on Dec. 4, 2009, when a suicide assault team stormed a mosque frequented by military officers in Rawalpindi. Two senior generals were among the 40 people killed.

Another major attack took place on July 1, 2010, when suicide bombers struck the Data Ganj Bakhsh shrine in Lahore, killing 41 people and wounding more than 170. Three suicide bombers detonated their vests at the shrine at a time when it was most frequented, in an effort to maximize casualties.

The last major attack against religious targets took place on Aug. 31, when a suicide bomber killed 11 people in an attack outside a mosque in Quetta.

Major attacks at mosques, religious events, and Islamic institutions in Pakistan since December 2007:

Sept. 15, 2011: A suicide bomber detonated his vest in a crowd of mourners at a funeral in Lower Dir, killing 31 people.

Aug. 31, 2011: A suicide bomber detonated in a parked car outside a Quetta mosque, killing 11 people.

Aug. 19, 2011: More than 40 people were killed in a suicide attack at a mosque in Jamrud in the Khyber tribal agency.

April 3, 2011: The Taliban killed 41 people in a double suicide attack on a Sufi shrine in Dera Ghazi Khan.

March 4, 2011: The Taliban killed nine people in a bombing at a mosque in Nowshera.

Jan. 25, 2011: Suicide attacks that targeted Shia religious processions in Lahore and Karachi killed 16 people. The Fedayeen-e-Islam, a subgroup of the Pakistani Taliban, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, and Jaish-e-Mohammed, claimed credit for the Lahore attack.

Nov. 5, 2010: A suicide attack outside a mosque in Darra Adam Khel killed 50 people.

Oct. 25, 2010: Five people were killed when an IED was detonated inside a shrine in Pakpattan.

Oct. 22, 2010: Five people were killed when an IED was detonated inside a mosque in Peshawar.

Oct. 7, 2010: Two suicide bombers killed eight people in a coordinated attack on the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine in Karachi.

Sept. 3, 2010: A suicide bomber attempted to storm a mosque in Mardan, but was stopped by security guards. One person was killed after he detonated his vest.

Sept. 1, 2010: Suicide bombers detonated during Shia religious processions in Lahore, killing 28 people.

Aug. 23, 2010: A suicide bomber detonated at a mosque in Wana, South Waziristan, killing 18 people.

July 1, 2010: Suicide bombers detonated at the Data Ganj Bakhsh shrine in Lahore, killing 41 people and wounding more than 170.

May 28, 2010: The Punjabi Taliban assaulted two Ahamadi mosques in Lahore, killing more than 70 people.

Dec. 18, 2009: A suicide bomber detonated inside a mosque frequented by policemen in Lower Dir, killing 12.

Dec. 4, 2009: A suicide assault team stormed a mosque in Rawalpindi that is frequented by Army officers, killing 40.

Oct. 20, 2009: A pair of suicide bombers detonated their vests at Islamabad’s International Islamic University, killing five.

June 12, 2009: A suicide bomber killed five Pakistanis, including anti-Taliban cleric Dr. Sarfraz Naeemi, in an attack on a mosque in Lahore during Friday prayers.

June 12, 2009: A suicide bomber killed six worshipers and wounded more than 90 in an attack inside a mosque in Nowshera. The attack collapsed the dome of the mosque.

June 5, 2009: A suicide bomber killed 49 worshipers in an attack on a mosque in a remote village in Dir.

April 5, 2009: A suicide bomber killed 24 worshipers and wounded more than 100 in an attack outside a Shia religious center in the Chakwal district in Punjab province.

March 27, 2009: A Taliban suicide bomber killed more than 70 worshipers and wounded more than 125 in an attack at a mosque in the Khyber tribal agency.

March 5, 2009: An attacker threw a hand grenade into the middle of a mosque in Dera Ismail Khan, wounding 25 worshipers.

March 2, 2009: A suicide bomber killed six people during an attack at a gathering in a mosque in the Pishin district in Baluchistan.

Feb. 20, 2008: A suicide bomber killed 32 Pakistanis and wounded more than 85 in an attack on a funeral procession for a Shia elder who was murdered in Dera Ismail Khan.

Feb. 5, 2009: A suicide attack outside a mosque killed more than 30 Shia worshipers and wounded more than 50.

Nov. 22, 2008: A bombing at a mosque in Hangu killed five civilians and wounded seven.

Nov. 21, 2008: A suicide attack on a funeral procession in Dera Ismail Khan killed 10 mourners and wounded more than 25.

Sept. 10, 2008: The Taliban attacked a mosque filled with Ramadan worshipers in the district of Dir in northwestern Pakistan. More than 25 worshipers were killed and more than 50 were wounded.

Aug. 19, 2008: A suicide bomber killed 29 Shia mourners and wounded 35 after detonating in the emergency ward of a hospital.

June 17, 2008: Four Pakistanis were killed and three wounded in a bombing at a Shia mosque in Dera Ismail Khan.

May 19, 2008: Four Pakistanis were killed in a bombing outside a mosque in Bajaur.

Jan. 17, 2008: A suicide bomber killed 10 and wounded 25 in an attack on a Shia mosque in Peshawar.

Dec. 28, 2007: A suicide bomber detonated in the middle of a mosque in Charsadda in an attempt to kill former Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao as he conducted Eid prayers. More than 50 were killed and more than 200 were wounded.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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5 Comments

  • Neo says:

    How about an ounce of dignity, to go along with all that endless stamina?

  • Villiger says:

    Hello Pakistan, what a wonderful job you are doing for world peace.
    You guys, who conceived, approved and placed your ad are looking like a right bunch of asses.
    How do you guys Kiyani, Zardari, Pasha, Gilani and your motley crew sleep at night?
    Gutless, shameless, corrupt and incompetent. This incident is part of the historical record of your taking your country down the tubes. Or should i say driving it into the gutter where your Haqqanis, Hafiz Saeeds and other rats roam.

  • Neo says:

    How about an ounce of dignity, to go along with all that endless stamina?

  • Neonmeat says:

    I was going to write a long comment on the Talibans double standards regarding their religious and moral duties but after looking at that list again I’m just so exasperated by these pointless attacks I do not know what to say anymore. I feel sorry for the people of Afghanistan/Pakistan but I am also frustrated by their apparent support of the Taliban groups when this blatant murder happens on an almost daily basis.
    I hope that we can wipe these vile disgusting people of the face of the earth, there should be no negotiation with these murderers send them to their God and let them try and negotiate with him when he reads out the above list.

  • Gerald says:

    It is amazing how the Taliban can kill innocent civilians without a single word of protest. But when ISAF accidently cause a death, you see tens of thousands in he streets. Where is your outrage now?

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