Suicide bombing in Islamabad kills 12, says Pakistan's interior minister

A suicide attack outside a court in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, has killed 12 people and injured at least 27 more, the country's interior minister said.

Mohsin Naqvi said a bomber was planning to attack the district courthouse - but was unable to get inside.

Naqvi said authorities would prioritise identifying the bomber, and that those involved would be brought to justice.

Suicide blasts in Islamabad have been rare in recent years. Footage from the scene on Tuesday showed the remains of a burnt out car and a police cordon in place.

The 27 people injured are receiving medical treatment, Naqvi said.

He added that the attacker detonated the bomb close to a police car after waiting for up to 15 minutes.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said he "strongly condemned the suicide blast".

Meanwhile, a lawyer who said he was parking his car outside the court at the time, described hearing a "loud bang".

Rustam Malik told AFP news agency AFP "it was complete chaos".

"Lawyers and people were running inside the complex," he added. "I saw two dead bodies lying on the gate and several cars were on fire."

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