The death toll in the suicide attack targeting one of Pakistan's oldest and most revered <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/death-toll-rises-to-11-in-lahore-suicide-attack-outside-sufi-shrine-217175/amp">Sufi shrines in Lahore</a> has risen to 13 as another civilian succumbed to his injuries, a media report said Monday.

Tahir Aslam, 18, was working at a shop near the shrine. He was among the critically injured and was brought to the Mayo Hospital where he has succumbed to his injuries.

He was rushed to the hospital after the blast which has claimed the lives of six policemen and seven civilians, the Dawn newspaper reported.

A senior police official told the daily on condition of anonymity that security forces had yet to make any substantial progress in the investigations into the attack.

He said that although they had arrested a few suspects from Lahore, they were no big leads.

A suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Data Darbar shrine, the largest Sufi shrine in South Asia on Wednesday, the second day of the fasting month of Ramzan. A CCTV footage showed a teenage boy wearing black shalwar kameez and a suicide vest coming closer to the vehicle of elite force before blowing himself up.

Punjab Inspector General of Police Arif Nawaz has said it was a suicide attack as the target was the vehicle of the elite force that was stationed outside the shrine of Sufi saint Ali Hajvari commonly known as Data Darbar.

"Police was the target. 100 per cent," he said.

Lahore police spokesman Syed Mubashir has said the police have arrested four suspects with the help of CCTV cameras in the city.

The rickshaw used to transport the suicide bomber to the shrine has been identified, he added.

The CCTV footage shows the rickshaw driver approached the bomber as the latter emerged from Garhi Shahu area, some seven kilometres from the shrine.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistan-pm-imran-khan-slams-hotel-attack-as-bid-to-damage-economy-218007">Prime Minister Imran Khan</a> condemned the attack and has directed the Punjab government to provide all assistance to the injured and families of victims.

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has ordered an inquiry into the attack.

The famous shrine is visited by hundreds of thousands of people each year. In 2010, the heavily-guarded shrine was targeted in a suicide attack that killed more than 40 people.

Police also confirmed that Hizbul Ahrar had claimed responsibility for sending the teenage suicide bomber to the shrine.

The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab has examined the records of three terror groups, including the Ghazi Force and Jamaatul Ahrar.

Hizbul Ahrar is a splinter group of Jamaatul Ahrar headed by Muqarram Shah from Afghanistan. It separated from Jamaatul Ahrar due to internal rifts.

It started operating separately to target primarily the law enforcement agencies in various parts of Pakistan, the police said, adding the CTD is also following other leads, like the possibility of the involvement of Islamic State terror group.&nbsp;

The death toll in the suicide attack targeting one of Pakistan's oldest and most revered Sufi shrines in Lahore has risen to 13 as another civilian succumbed to his injuries, a media report said Monday.

The death toll in the suicide attack targeting one of Pakistan's oldest and most revered Sufi shrines in Lahore has risen to 13 as another civilian succumbed to his injuries, a media report said Monday. Tahir Aslam, 18, was working at a shop near the shrine. He was among the critically injured and was brought to the Mayo Hospital where he has succumbed to his injuries. He was rushed to the hospital after the blast which has claimed the lives of six policemen and seven civilians, the Dawn newspaper reported. A senior police official told the daily on condition of anonymity that security forces had yet to make any substantial progress in the investigations into the attack. He said that although they had arrested a few suspects from Lahore, they were no big leads. A suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Data Darbar shrine, the largest Sufi shrine in South Asia on Wednesday, the second day of the fasting month of Ramzan. A CCTV footage showed a teenage boy wearing black shalwar kameez and a suicide vest coming closer to the vehicle of elite force before blowing himself up. Punjab Inspector General of Police Arif Nawaz has said it was a suicide attack as the target was the vehicle of the elite force that was stationed outside the shrine of Sufi saint Ali Hajvari commonly known as Data Darbar. "Police was the target. 100 per cent," he said. Lahore police spokesman Syed Mubashir has said the police have arrested four suspects with the help of CCTV cameras in the city. The rickshaw used to transport the suicide bomber to the shrine has been identified, he added. The CCTV footage shows the rickshaw driver approached the bomber as the latter emerged from Garhi Shahu area, some seven kilometres from the shrine. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack and has directed the Punjab government to provide all assistance to the injured and families of victims. Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has ordered an inquiry into the attack. The famous shrine is visited by hundreds of thousands of people each year. In 2010, the heavily-guarded shrine was targeted in a suicide attack that killed more than 40 people. Police also confirmed that Hizbul Ahrar had claimed responsibility for sending the teenage suicide bomber to the shrine. The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab has examined the records of three terror groups, including the Ghazi Force and Jamaatul Ahrar. Hizbul Ahrar is a splinter group of Jamaatul Ahrar headed by Muqarram Shah from Afghanistan. It separated from Jamaatul Ahrar due to internal rifts. It started operating separately to target primarily the law enforcement agencies in various parts of Pakistan, the police said, adding the CTD is also following other leads, like the possibility of the involvement of Islamic State terror group.

Death toll rises to 13 in Lahore Sufi shrine suicide attack

Pakistani forces said Friday they had killed more than 100 &quot;terrorists&quot; after 88 people died in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group on a Sufi shrine which stoked fears of a fresh surge in militancy.

The devastating blast came after a series of bloody extremist assaults this week, including a powerful Taliban suicide bomb in the eastern city of Lahore which killed 13 people and wounded dozens.

Prime minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief of staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa Friday visited the town of Sehwan in Sindh province where the latest attack took place.

Sharif vowed to eliminate militants &quot;with the full force of the state&quot;.

Pakistan&#39;s military later said operations were in progress across the country. &quot;Over 100 terrorists have been killed since last night&quot;, it said, adding others had been detained.&nbsp;

The emergence of Islamic State group (IS) and a Taliban resurgence would be a major blow to Pakistan, and the attacks have dented growing optimism over security after a decade-long war on militancy.

Police Friday cordoned off the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, a 13th century Muslim saint, in Sehwan, some 200 kilometres (124 miles) northeast of financial hub Karachi.

The centuries-old shrine&#39;s white floor was smeared with blood, scattered with shoes, shawls, and baby bottles.

At 3.30 am the shrine&#39;s caretaker stood among the carnage and defiantly rang its bell, a daily ritual that he vowed to continue, telling AFP he will &quot;not bow down to terrorists&quot;.

Health officials said the number of people killed in the shrine blast had jumped to 88, including at least 20 children, making it the deadliest attack in Pakistan since a 2014 assault on a Peshawar school.

Islamabad has denied the presence of IS, despite several high-profile attacks and the group&#39;s apparent affiliation with homegrown militants, such as the banned Sunni sectarian organisation Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ).

&quot;I think they (IS) are capable of doing this&quot; with help from homegrown groups, security expert Amir Rana said of the shrine bombing, as analyst Imtiaz Gul warned the group would claim more such attacks.

Gul also warned there are &quot;visible signs&quot; that factions of the umbrella Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or Pakistani Taliban), which is distinct from the Afghan Taliban, are regrouping after a military crackdown.

TTP faction Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed the Lahore attack on Monday, days after it announced a fresh offensive. Two members of a bomb disposal team in Quetta, capital of southwestern Balochistan province, were killed the same day defusing a device there.

On Wednesday four suicide bombers struck in one day in the tribal areas and on a van carrying judges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial capital Peshawar, killing six people in attacks also claimed by the TTP.

An IED attack in Balochistan which killed three soldiers Thursday unnerved Pakistanis further, while gunmen on motorcycles killed four policemen and a civilian in the northwest overnight Friday.

Rana predicted the &quot;intense&quot; wave of TTP attacks would continue, saying security forces had failed to crack the militants&#39; operational infrastructure, especially in cities.

But both the military and the foreign office said the recent attacks had been carried out from sanctuaries in Afghanistan, and that Kabul had been asked to take action. Neither referred specifically to the IS claim.

Pakistan&#39;s push against extremism was stepped up after the country`s deadliest ever attack, a TTP assault on a school in Peshawar in 2014 which left more than 150 people dead -- mostly children.

Critics have long argued the military and government crackdown does not address the root causes of extremism.

Security officials said at least 18 terrorists had been killed in Sindh province overnight, and 13 more in the country&#39;s northwest.

Pakistanis vented their grief and fury at the bombings on social media and with small protests in some cities.

&quot;The government should identify and punish these terrorists,&quot; Ghulam Shabbir Bhatti, a resident of Sehwan, said.

&quot;Sunnis, Shias, Hindus, ppl from all faiths visit Sehwan... This is an attack on our identity &amp; culture,&quot; wrote Twitter user Zahraa Saifullah.

Sufism, a mystic Islamic order that believes in living saints, worships through music and is viewed as heretical by some hardline groups.

IS has targeted Sufi shrines in Pakistan previously, killing 52 at a shrine in Balochistan last year.

(AFP)

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif vowed to eliminate militants 'with the full force of the state'

Pakistani forces said Friday they had killed more than 100 "terrorists" after 88 people died in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group on a Sufi shrine which stoked fears of a fresh surge in militancy. The devastating blast came after a series of bloody extremist assaults this week, including a powerful Taliban suicide bomb in the eastern city of Lahore which killed 13 people and wounded dozens. Prime minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief of staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa Friday visited the town of Sehwan in Sindh province where the latest attack took place. Sharif vowed to eliminate militants "with the full force of the state". Pakistan's military later said operations were in progress across the country. "Over 100 terrorists have been killed since last night", it said, adding others had been detained. The emergence of Islamic State group (IS) and a Taliban resurgence would be a major blow to Pakistan, and the attacks have dented growing optimism over security after a decade-long war on militancy. Police Friday cordoned off the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, a 13th century Muslim saint, in Sehwan, some 200 kilometres (124 miles) northeast of financial hub Karachi. The centuries-old shrine's white floor was smeared with blood, scattered with shoes, shawls, and baby bottles. At 3.30 am the shrine's caretaker stood among the carnage and defiantly rang its bell, a daily ritual that he vowed to continue, telling AFP he will "not bow down to terrorists". Health officials said the number of people killed in the shrine blast had jumped to 88, including at least 20 children, making it the deadliest attack in Pakistan since a 2014 assault on a Peshawar school. Islamabad has denied the presence of IS, despite several high-profile attacks and the group's apparent affiliation with homegrown militants, such as the banned Sunni sectarian organisation Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ). "I think they (IS) are capable of doing this" with help from homegrown groups, security expert Amir Rana said of the shrine bombing, as analyst Imtiaz Gul warned the group would claim more such attacks. Gul also warned there are "visible signs" that factions of the umbrella Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or Pakistani Taliban), which is distinct from the Afghan Taliban, are regrouping after a military crackdown. TTP faction Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed the Lahore attack on Monday, days after it announced a fresh offensive. Two members of a bomb disposal team in Quetta, capital of southwestern Balochistan province, were killed the same day defusing a device there. On Wednesday four suicide bombers struck in one day in the tribal areas and on a van carrying judges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial capital Peshawar, killing six people in attacks also claimed by the TTP. An IED attack in Balochistan which killed three soldiers Thursday unnerved Pakistanis further, while gunmen on motorcycles killed four policemen and a civilian in the northwest overnight Friday. Rana predicted the "intense" wave of TTP attacks would continue, saying security forces had failed to crack the militants' operational infrastructure, especially in cities. But both the military and the foreign office said the recent attacks had been carried out from sanctuaries in Afghanistan, and that Kabul had been asked to take action. Neither referred specifically to the IS claim. Pakistan's push against extremism was stepped up after the country`s deadliest ever attack, a TTP assault on a school in Peshawar in 2014 which left more than 150 people dead -- mostly children. Critics have long argued the military and government crackdown does not address the root causes of extremism. Security officials said at least 18 terrorists had been killed in Sindh province overnight, and 13 more in the country's northwest. Pakistanis vented their grief and fury at the bombings on social media and with small protests in some cities. "The government should identify and punish these terrorists," Ghulam Shabbir Bhatti, a resident of Sehwan, said. "Sunnis, Shias, Hindus, ppl from all faiths visit Sehwan... This is an attack on our identity & culture," wrote Twitter user Zahraa Saifullah. Sufism, a mystic Islamic order that believes in living saints, worships through music and is viewed as heretical by some hardline groups. IS has targeted Sufi shrines in Pakistan previously, killing 52 at a shrine in Balochistan last year. (AFP)

After attack on shrine, Pak army says over 100 'terrorists' killed

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Death toll rises to 13 in Lahore Sufi shrine suicide attack

After attack on shrine, Pak army says over 100 'terrorists' killed