Peshawar blast kills Lashkar-e-Islam chief Mufti Munir Shakir, injures three others

• Khushal, Abid and Said Nabi were wounded in explosion. 
• Mufti Shakir succumbed to his injuries, says hospital spox.
• Several guards used to guarded him due to various threats.

PESHAWAR: A bombing at the door of a mosque in the Urmar area of Peshawar on Saturday killed noted religious scholar Mufti Munir Shakir, the founder of the outlawed Lashkar-e-Islam, and injured three others.

When Shakir entered the mosque in the Kachori neighbourhood to offer Asr prayers, a bomb that apparently targeted the religious scholar detonated, The News reported on Sunday.

The entrance of the mosque was partially damaged as a result of the explosion. Teams of bomb disposal experts and investigation collected evidence from the spot, said police.

The police said that 600 grammes of explosives were used in the blast which was planted in front of the mosque's gate. They said CCTV was being obtained from nearby areas to assist in the investigations.

Shakir and three others, Khushal, Abid and Said Nabi, were wounded in the blast and were rushed to the Lady Reading Hospital.

The spokesman for the LRH Mohammad Asim later told the media through a video message that Mufti Shakir succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. He said the body of the deceased was handed over to his family.

The firebrand religious scholar was popular for his speeches which went viral on different social media forums. Several guards used to guard him due to various threats.

Mufti Shakir, 56, had established later proscribed Lashkar-e-Islam in Khyber district over two decades ago. He was a staunch rival of Peer Saifur Rehman. Later, Shakir and Peer Saif were forced to leave Khyber district after a Jirga verdict to maintain law and order in the district. Mufti Shakir reappeared in the remote Urmar village of Peshawar a few years back.