At least 45 people were killed in two back-to-back suicide attacks at Data Darbar in Lahore late on Thursday night.
“Thirty-five people died on the spot and 10 more lost the battle for life today (Friday). We have confirmation of 45 deaths,” a senior police official told this newspaper, a
dding, “Over 200 people were injured and several are in critical condition. We expect the toll to rise.” The suicide attacks took place at the shrine of Sufi saint Data Gunj Bukhsh in the heart of Lahore.
The police said two terrorists wearing vests packed with explosives, weighing around 20 kg, blew themselves up at two different places on the Darbar premises, which is frequented by devotees, especially on Thursdays.
The first attacker blew himself up in the basement at around 10.46 pm (local time) while the second entered the courtyard before detonating his explosives two minutes later.
The attacks took place when hundreds of devotees had gathered to pray, the police said.