ANKARA
Turkey harshly condemned the blast at a Shiite mosque in southern Pakistan that rocked the country Friday.
At least 49 people were killed and 50 injured in the blast, according to health officials.
Turkey's Foreign Ministry released a statement Friday offering condolences to victims' families and wishing a fast recovery to those wounded.
"We harshly condemn this hateful attack that targeted Pakistan's peace, stability and prosperity, and we express our deep feelings of solidarity with the Pakistani government and its people," the statement said.
The blast occurred during Friday prayers but the nature of the attack was unknown, with some eyewitnesses telling local media that a woman in a black gown blew herself up while a senior police official told The Anadolu Agency that it was a remote controlled explosion.
Local police speculated that the attack may have been carried out by a suicide bomber targeting Friday prayers at the Shiite mosque.
This was the second blast at a Shiite Mosque in a month in Pakistan, where there is a three-decade history of sectarian violence between the Sunni-majority and Shiite-minority Muslim communities.
