Suicide bomber kills 12 outside court in Pakistan's capital

A suicide bomber killed at least 12 people outside a court building in Pakistan‘s capital Islamabad on Tuesday, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said.

ISLAMABAD — A suicide bomber struck outside the gates of a district court in Islamabad on Tuesday, detonating his explosives next to a police car and killing 12 people and wounding 27, the Pakistani interior minister said.

The blast, which was heard miles away, came at a time when the area is typically crowded with hundreds of visitors attending hearings. Earlier reports by Pakistani state-run media and two security officials said a car bomb had caused the explosion.

The attacker tried to “enter the court premises but, failing to do so, targeted a police vehicle,” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, center, visiting the blast site on Tuesday.Farooq Naeem / AFP via Getty ImagesThe minister refrained from blaming any militant group but added that authorities are “looking into all aspects” of the attack. Naqvi said police investigators also confirmed the blast was caused by a suicide bomber.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion, but Pakistan has struggled with militant attacks across the country and a resurgent Pakistani Taliban.