Two suicide bombers attacked a packed Catholic church in southwestern Pakistan on Sunday, killing at least nine people and wounding up to 45 before one of them blew himself up and police killed the other, officials said.
The gunmen wearing explosives-filled vests stormed the church in Quetta city when Sunday services had just opened, exploding a suicide vest and shooting at the Christian worshippers, said Sarfraz Bugti, the home minister of Baluchistan province.
- Armed militants attacked a church in Quetta, Balochistan in Pakistan on Sunday, 17 December
- At least nine people have been confirmed dead, with over 45 injured in the attack
- Balochistan’s Home Minister confirms the attack was a suicide bombing
- The attack targeted the church where prayers of Christian community were being held
- The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack.
ISIS Claims Responsibility
The Islam State (ISIS) has claimed responsibility for the attack. Their news agency - Amaq posted a statement online saying that their attackers had stormed the church in Quetta. However, the terror group has provided no evidence for the claim.
9 Confirmed Dead, 45 Injured
At least nine people are confirmed dead, and over 45 are injured in the attack, Reuters reported. The attack on the Bethel Memorial Church on Zarghoon road in the Balochistan capital has come just over a week before Christmas.
"It Was a Suicide Bombing," says Baloch Home Minister
“The gunmen wearing explosives-filled vests stormed the church in Quetta city when Sunday services had just opened, exploding a suicide vest and shooting at the Christian worshippers,” said Sarfraz Bugti, the home minister of Balochistan province.
Police guards at the church exchanged fire with the attackers before they could enter the main sanctuary, said provincial police chief Moazzam Jah.
"There were nearly 400 people inside the church, but the attackers couldn't get inside the services," Jah said.
"We killed one of them, and the other one exploded himself after police wounded him."
Jah said the church had guards because Christian places of worship are often targeted by Islamist extremist groups.
Pak Media Claims Death Toll Has Risen to 9
Pak news channel Samaa TV claimed that the death toll has risen to 9, with 30 left injured. An accurate estimate of the death toll will be clearer once official sources come forward.