Targeted: Blast targets one of Mohmand Agency’s oldest mosques

Mosque’s boundary wall and room destroyed; no lives lost.

GHALANAI:

One of Mohmand Agency’s oldest mosques was targeted in a bomb blast on Friday.

Unidentified militants planted a bomb next to the wall of Jamia Masjid Rodh Chanda in Ghalanai, the headquarters of the Mohmand Agency, which destroyed a room and the boundary wall of the mosque.

“Around 8am, an explosion was heard in the area from the Jamia Masjid Rodh Chanda which resulted in much damage to the structure,”said Assistant Political Agent (APA) Rasool Khan Wazir while talking to The Express Tribune.  He added that there was no loss of life in the attack as no one was present at the mosque at the time. This was an old mosque in the area which was also not left by militants, the APA said.

After the blast, security forces rushed to the area along with sniffer dogs to arrest the culprits. Four suspects were apprehended later under the joint responsibility clause of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR).

According to the locals, Jamia Masjid Rodh Chanda was one of the oldest mosques in the area, where people would gather to perform Friday prayers.

“People prefer to offer prayers in this mosque due to their spiritual sentiments associated with it,” said a tribesman.

The mosque, built in 1964 was also a religious learning center to 300 students.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2012.