Large crowd attends burial for senior religious leader with ties to Taliban killed in northwest Pakistan

AKORA KHATTAK – Thousands of mourners attended a funeral Saturday for a Taliban-linked cleric slain in Pakistan’s northwest.

Hamidul Haq, the leader of Jamia Haqqania seminary, was among the seven individuals who tragically lost their lives in a suicide bombing the day before at a mosque located within the seminary’s premises. Law enforcement officials have stated that Haq was the intended target of the attack.

He was the offspring of the deceased Maulana Samiul Haq, a prominent figure recognized for his role in establishing the Taliban factions in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Over the years, numerous members of the Afghan Taliban have received education at Jamia Haqqania.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for Friday’s attack.

Authorities have released a photograph of the suspected suicide bomber and have appealed to the general public for assistance in identifying the individual. To encourage cooperation, a reward of 500,000 rupees, equivalent to $1,787, is being offered for any information regarding the bomber’s identity, parents, and place of residence.

Mourners packed into the main hall of the seminary for Haq’s funeral, with more praying on the street. The prayers passed without incident due to a heavy police deployment and seminary students guarding the venue.

The bombing at Jamia Haqqania seminary was one of four attacks in Pakistan on Friday, two of them at mosques, which were unusual both in their number and timing, just before the holy month of Ramadan.