Gun Men attacks Methodist Worshipers- 9 dead, Several Others in Critical Condition

Gun Men attacks Methodist Worshipers- 9 dead, Several Others in Critical Condition

Hundreds of believers were taking communion at Bethel Memorial Methodist Church when two bombers carrying assault rifles stormed the church, triggering a showdown with police guards. One terrorist was gunned down by police at the church entrance. The other made it inside, opened fire on worshippers, and detonated explosives on his vest.

"It was a pleasant morning. We had sung songs and children had presented a Christmas program. Pastor Simon Bashir had finished his sermon and we were moving towards the altar when we started hearing gunfire outside the church," Sohail Yousuf told World Watch Monitor. Yousef's 13 year-old daughter Mehak was killed during the attack. Meanwhile, her 16 year-old sister Wasiqa is in critical condition a nearby hospital.

"We bolted all the doors and were praying that God would protect each of us. Then a suicide bomber blew himself up at the main door. The explosion shattered the door and injured many inside. When some rushed outside, they were injured by gunfire as the terrorists were on the church lawn. But soon the situation was brought under control by the volunteer church security guards and police present there."

Mass funerals for those killed in the attack were held later Monday.

"A team of about 70 youths is working day and night to provide blood supplies, food or any other assistance to the injured, and coffins for the burial," Caritas Executive Director Sheezan William said.

Security forces are searching the area to find those who orchestrated the attack. Meanwhile, church leaders have been ordered to vacate the area for their safety.

General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the head of the Pakistani army, denounced the murder of Christians.

"Quetta church attack targeting our brotherly Christian Pakistanis is an attempt to cloud Christmas celebrations. We stay united and steadfast to respond against such heinous attempts," he said.

The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan also condemned the attack.

Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan Province in southwest Pakistan. The territory borders Iran and Afghanistan and is plagued by violence from militant groups linked to the Taliban, Al-Qaida and the Islamic State.

Pakistani churches are on high alert during the Christmas season, because they are the target of Islamic extremists, especially during Christian holidays.

In March 2016, more than 70 people died in an attack on a Lahore park where many Christians were celebrating on Easter Sunday.

The deadliest attack against Christians in Pakistan happened in September 2013, when two suicide bombers targeted All Saints Church in Peshawar, killed more than 80 people.

General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the head of the Pakistani army, denounced the murder of Christians.

"Quetta church attack targeting our brotherly Christian Pakistanis is an attempt to cloud Christmas celebrations. We stay united and steadfast to respond against such heinous attempts," he said.

The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan also condemned the attack.

Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan Province in southwest Pakistan. The territory borders Iran and Afghanistan and is plagued by violence from militant groups linked to the Taliban, Al-Qaida and the Islamic State.

Pakistani churches are on high alert during the Christmas season, because they are the target of Islamic extremists, especially during Christian holidays.

General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the head of the Pakistani army, denounced the murder of Christians.

"Quetta church attack targeting our brotherly Christian Pakistanis is an attempt to cloud Christmas celebrations. We stay united and steadfast to respond against such heinous attempts," he said.

The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan also condemned the attack.

Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan Province in southwest Pakistan. The territory borders Iran and Afghanistan and is plagued by violence from militant groups linked to the Taliban, Al-Qaida and the Islamic State.

Pakistani churches are on high alert during the Christmas season, because they are the target of Islamic extremists, especially during Christian holidays.

In March 2016, more than 70 people died in an attack on a Lahore park where many Christians were celebrating on Easter Sunday.

The deadliest attack against Christians in Pakistan happened in September 2013, when two suicide bombers targeted All Saints Church in Peshawar, killed more than 80 people.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ( ISIL , also known as ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack on the church in Quetta but did not provide corroborating evidence such as the names and photographs of the bombers, as it had done for previous attacks in Pakistan.

Before the blast, Alexander Calvin had been ready to watch his six-year-old daughter in the children's performance.

The 51-year-old sent his little girl, dressed in white with small angel wings, to the school building and sat in the adjacent main church hall to pray.

He never expected the day to end in a deafening explosion and a hail of bullets.

"I heard the first bullets, and then after, a short pause, it was constant," said Calvin, a news photographer from the southwestern city. "I ran first to the Sunday school building to lock the door and told them to lock it from the inside. Then I ran back to the church."

Calvin, his daughter and four-year-old son survived the brazen attack on Pakistan's minority Christian community just a week before Christmas, which also wounded at least 55 people.

Security personnel killed one of the attackers at the gate and injured a gunman.

"We could see him coming towards us," said Calvin. "He had been shot in the arm and the leg, but he was still firing at us."

Inside, there was pandemonium.

Men, women and children were screaming, with several attempting to get to the adjacent Sunday school building to save their children, witnesses said.

"I had locked the front door of the church," said Calvin. "[The attacker] got to the main door. He touched the door, and when he saw it was locked, and he exploded himself at the door itself.

"A wooden door is nothing in front of explosives - everyone who was in front of the door was hit by the blast. Five people were killed instantly, and many more were wounded."