At least nine people including four Pakistanis and an Indian were killed by gunfire in the vicinity of a mosque in Oman’s capital of Muscat, the Omani police said on Tuesday, a rare breach of security in one of the most stable countries in the Middle East.
Local authorities said nearly 30 people of various nationalities including a security personnel were also wounded.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the injured were currently under treatment in the hospitals.
“The Royal Oman Police have responded to a shooting incident that occurred in the vicinity of a mosque in the Al-Wadi Al-Kabir area,” police said in a statement.
The law enforcement officials also said that all security measures have been taken to deal with the situation while procedures are underway for collecting evidence and probing the attack.
Pakistan’s Ambassador to Oman Imran Chaudhry, in a statement, said the Omani government has confirmed four deaths, out of which two lives lost were of Pakistanis.
“I was present with the diplomatic staff at night,” said Imran, adding that the Omani authorities are investigating the incident.
According to the Embassy of Pakistan, a terrorist attack took place on July 15 in the Wadi Kabir Muscat area by unknown assailants.
It said that the authorities have cordoned off the area with drone and the surveillance is underway, adding that the operation by the Omani authorities started at 2:30am Muscat time after evacuation.
“Government has put up high alert and emergency at state level as well as some injured are shifted to nearby hospitals,” said the embassy, adding that it established an Emergency Response Centre and teams which are in contact with patients and their families.
It also mentioned that Ambassador of Pakistan in Oman Ali has visited the hospitals and meeting with affected Pakistani families.
Meanwhile, Indian embassy in Oman confirmed the death of one of its citizens. In a statement posted on X, the embassy said that the casualties included one Indian national, while another was among the injured.
