An armed assault on the Baitul Mahdi mosque in Gol Bazaar, Rabwah – also officially known as Chenab Nagar – in Punjab of Pakistan was repelled by security personnel on Friday, resulting in the death of one attacker and injuries to four security volunteers.
The incident occurred while members of the Ahmadiyya community were engaged in saying prayers, reports BBC.
According to a spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Jamaat in Pakistan, a group of four individuals arrived at the mosque in a vehicle.
One of them, armed with a firearm, exited the vehicle and attempted to enter the mosque premises. As he began firing, security personnel stationed outside the place of worship immediately responded, engaging the assailant in a gunfight.
In the ensuing exchange of gunfire, the armed attacker was killed on the spot. However, four members of the mosque’s security team sustained injuries and were subsequently taken for medical treatment. Their current condition has not been disclosed.
A senior official from the Chenab Nagar police station in Chiniot district provided further details to the BBC, confirming that a significant number of worshippers were present inside the mosque at the time of the attack.
The official stated that the three other individuals who arrived with the gunman managed to flee the scene in the same vehicle immediately after the shooting began, evading capture.
District Police Officer (DPO) Chiniot, Abdullah Ahmed, told the BBC that law enforcement authorities received immediate reports of the incident and rushed to the location.
Upon arrival, police and security officials assessed the situation and launched a comprehensive search operation.
Gol Bazaar and its surrounding neighbourhoods have since been cordoned off, with all major entry and exit routes blocked in an effort to locate and apprehend the remaining suspects.
As of Friday evening, no arrests have been made, and the identities of the suspects remain unknown. Authorities have not yet disclosed a possible motive, though the Ahmadiyya community has historically been a frequent target of sectarian and extremist violence in Pakistan.
Under Pakistani law, the Ahmadiyya community is constitutionally declared non-Muslim – a status enshrined in the Second Amendment of 1974 – and its members face systemic discrimination, including restrictions on religious practice and public expression of faith.
Ahmadi places of worship are prohibited from being called “mosques” under Ordinance XX of 1984, and the community is required to provide its own security due to longstanding government policy.