Twelve persons were killed and 27 injured in suicide bombing outside a court in Pakistani capital Islamabad, AFP quoted the country’s Internal Minister Mohsin Naqvi as saying.

The blast took place at 12.39 pm local time at the district courts complex, Naqvi told reporters.

The attacker attempted to enter the court premises, Al Jazeera quoted the interior minister as saying. After failing to do so, the man detonated the bomb close to a police vehicle.

Naqvi did not blame any armed group but said that the authorities are “looking into all aspects” of the attack.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on social media that Pakistan is in a “ state of war ” and the attack on Tuesday should be taken as a “ wake-up call ”, referring to the peace negotiations with the Taliban government

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