Islamabad court blast kills 12 as Pakistan blames India and Afghanistan
A suicide bombing outside a district court in Islamabad killed at least 12 people and injured 27 more on Tuesday, according to Pakistani officials, in an attack that immediately deepened political tensions at home and across the region.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said the attacker detonated explosives near a police vehicle outside the court gates after trying to enter the premises. The location is important: district courts in Pakistan’s capital are typically crowded with litigants, lawyers, staff, and passers-by, which made the blast especially destructive even before the full scale of the casualties was known.
Pakistan’s leadership quickly broadened the political stakes. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif blamed India for the Islamabad attack and another strike on a cadet college, calling them examples of “state terrorism” without offering evidence, according to the packet. That accusation arrived while investigators were still working the scene and before any group claimed responsibility. The absence of a claim is significant because it leaves the motive and network behind the bombing unresolved even as official rhetoric escalates.
Authorities said casualties included people who were simply near the courthouse for appointments or routine business. That detail suggests the attack was not just aimed at a symbol of state power but also at a busy public space where the line between legal process and daily life is thin. A police spokesperson said more information would follow a forensic report, underscoring that investigators were still at an early stage.
The blast came amid already strained relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The countries are in difficult talks after a series of cross-border attacks last month, and Pakistan accuses the Taliban government in Afghanistan of sheltering militants, including members of the Pakistan Taliban, or TTP. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said Pakistan was “in a state of war” and suggested the attack should be treated as a warning, while also casting doubt on the prospects for negotiation with Kabul.
The timing adds another layer of pressure: the Islamabad bombing came a day after a powerful explosion in New Delhi, and Pakistan also said it had thwarted an overnight attack on a cadet college in Wana. For now, the court bombing stands as the deadliest single event in the packet, but it is also part of a broader cycle of violence and accusation that could pull the region into a sharper confrontation if the investigation fails to establish clearer facts soon.
