6 Jun 2009

Bombing at mosque during prayers

9:05 am on 6 June 2009

A bomb has exploded at a mosque in north-western Pakistan during Friday prayers, killing at least 38 people and wounding dozens more.

Police said a suicide bomber detonated explosives at the mosque in Upper Dir district.

The nearby Swat Valley has been the scene of heavy fighting between the Pakistani military and the Taliban. Upper Dir has also been the scene of sporadic clashes.

The BBC reports the bomb exploded at the mosque in the village of Hayagai Sharki, about 15km from the town of Upper Dir.

The building was severely damaged and many worshippers were reported to have been trapped under the rubble.

In March, about 50 people died in a suicide bomb attack at a mosque near Jamrud, on the Khyber Pass route to Afghanistan.