The Foreign Ministry in Islamabad said at least four Pakistanis were killed.
Oman:
Six people, including four Pakistanis, were killed and nearly 30 injured in a shooting near a Shi’ite mosque in Oman’s capital Muscat, officials said on Tuesday, a rare attack in the otherwise stable Gulf sultanate.
Monday’s attack on the mosque, which has not yet been claimed, came as Shiites this week mark Ashura, an annual day of mourning commemorating the seventh-century death of Imam Hussein, considered by the sect to be the legitimate successor of the Prophet Muhammad.
“The Royal Oman Police responded to a shooting that occurred in the vicinity of a mosque in the Al-Wadi Al-Kabir area” of the capital, a police statement said.
The three gunmen behind the attack were killed and officers “have completed procedures to deal with the shooting,” he said.
He gave a death toll of six, including a police officer. According to the document, 28 people “of various nationalities” were injured, including rescuers and paramedics.
The Foreign Ministry in Islamabad said at least four Pakistanis were killed.
“Four Pakistanis were martyred as a result of gunfire in the cowardly terrorist attack on the Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque,” it said in a statement.
“Another 30 Pakistanis are undergoing treatment in hospitals.”
Images verified by AFP show people fleeing the Imam Ali mosque, with its minaret visible, as gunshots ring out.
A voice can be heard saying “oh God” and repeating “oh Hussein”.
Speaking to AFP, Pakistan’s ambassador to Oman, Imran Ali, said the mosque was frequented mainly by expatriates from South Asia. Oman is home to at least 400,000 Pakistanis, he said.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he was “deeply saddened by the terrorist attack”.
In a statement on social media platform X, he said: “Pakistan stands in solidarity with the Sultanate of Oman and offers full assistance in the investigation.”
Held hostage’
Pakistan’s ambassador said the attack began with gunfire coming from a building adjacent to the mosque as hundreds of people gathered to pray.
The worshipers were held “hostage” by militants before “later being freed by Omani forces”, Ali told AFP.
He said there was little information about the attackers or their possible motive.
“Everyone is being silent about this,” he said, adding that the attack created a “difficult situation.”
On Tuesday morning, Ali visited hospitals treating the injured.
In a video message on X, he urged Pakistanis in Oman to cooperate with authorities and avoid the area around the mosque.
“We are in contact with Omani authorities as well as hospitals. Our agents are on standby for emergency blood donations at the embassy,” he said, adding that a hotline has been set up to help the injured and their families .
The US embassy in Muscat issued a security alert following the shooting and canceled all visa appointments for Tuesday.
“US citizens must remain vigilant, monitor local news, and follow instructions from local authorities,” he posted on X.
Ongoing investigations
Police said “all necessary security measures and procedures were taken to deal with the situation” following the attack.
“Authorities continue to collect evidence and conduct investigations to uncover the circumstances surrounding the incident,” police added on X.
The area remained cordoned off on Tuesday, and journalists were unable to access the mosque, an AFP photographer said.
Oman has a population of more than four million, of which more than 40% are expatriate workers, mainly from South Asia, according to government data.
Shiites make up a small minority of Oman’s overwhelmingly Muslim population. Most Omanis follow the Sunni or Ibadi branches of the faith.
While several attacks on Shiite mosques have roiled the Gulf in recent years, Tuesday’s attack is the first in Oman.
A 2015 suicide attack on a Shiite mosque in Kuwait killed at least 27 worshipers and injured more than 200. It was claimed by the Sunni extremists of the Islamic State group.
In the same year, Saudi Arabia saw two attacks on Shiite mosques in the space of a week, with at least 25 people killed. The attacks were again claimed by IS, which considers Shiites heretics.
In 2005, a former teacher opened fire inside a government building in Muscat, killing two people and injuring several others, before killing himself.
(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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