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25 killed, 50 injured in Dir mosque attack

* Militants lob three grenades in Sunni mosque, fire at worshippers
* Most of the injured are children g NWFP MPA shot dead in Khalabat

LAHORE: At least 25 worshippers were killed and 50 others injured in a grenade-and-gun attack in a mosque in the Maskanai area of lower Dir on Wednesday.

Unidentified militants threw hand grenades in the Sunni mosque in Banai village – less than three kilometres from the Afghan border – during Taravih prayers and fired at the worshippers. “The attackers first lobbed grenades into the mosque and then opened fire with Kalashnikovs on the worshippers,” Bahadur Khan, the village nazim, told Reuters.

The attack was a rare one in Dir district, which has a majority of Sunni Muslims.

Local official Mahmood Khan told AFP three grenades were thrown into the mosque and hit the last two rows of the congregation. The security official said the attack did not appear to be sectarian.

“It is a blatant act of terrorism,” he said.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility so far, but Khan said last month a meeting of elders in the area had issued a strongly worded statement against the Taliban and had vowed to act against them entering the area.

Law-enforcement agencies cordoned off the area and beefed up security after the attack.

Children: The injured, most of who Express News reported to be children, were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital in Timar Garah and the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Samar Bagh. Dir District Co-ordination Officer Ghulam Muhammad told the state-run APP news agency that a state of emergency had been declared at the Timar Garha hospital.

Hospital official said many of the injured were in critical condition and feared the death toll could rise.

APP also said Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned the attack. “The prime minister, in his message, expressed profound grief and sorrow over the loss of life and prayed for the departed souls. He also prayed for the recovery of the injured,” the agency said.

NWFP MPA: Unidentified militants shot dead member of provincial assembly (MPA) and former NWFP minister Akhtar Nawaz Khan close to his home in Khalabat on Wednesday evening. The slain MPA was the provincial minister for fisheries in the previous government and had joined the Awami National Party (ANP) after winning the February 18 elections as an independent candidate. daily times monitor/agencies

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