Islamabad: An explosion apparently targeting a mosque in Pakistan's northwestern city of Parachinar, in a remote area bordering Afghanistan, killed at least 22 people and wounded dozens, officials said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the blast, which took place as people gathered for Friday prayers near the women's entrance of a Shia mosque in the central bazaar, follows a series of attacks this year.
He said gunfire preceded the incident, which he described as a suicide attack, adding, "The attack took place in a busy area and a women's mosque appears to be the target."
Last month, more than 80 people were killed and dozens wounded in an attack on a crowded Sufi shrine in southern Pakistan that was claimed by Islamic State.
Authorities in mainly Sunni-Muslim Pakistan said a military rescue helicopter had been sent to the scene to help evacuate the injured.
Mumtaz Hussain, a doctor at the Agency Headquarters Hospital in the region, said five bodies, including a woman and two children, and more than three dozen wounded, had been brought to the hospital and an appeal for blood donors had been made.
"Patients are being brought to us in private cars and ambulances and we have received over three dozen patients so far," Hussain told Reuters.
Sharif condemned the attack and said the government would keep up efforts to "eliminate the menace of terrorism".
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