More than 30 people were killed and 169 injured in an explosion at a mosque during Friday prayers in Islamabad, Pakistan, according to officials. The blast, which occurred in the Tarlai area, was reportedly caused by a suicide bomber who detonated a device after approaching the gates of the Shia mosque, as reported by BBC Urdu.
Eyewitnesses told the BBC that gunfire preceded the explosion. Emergency services were immediately deployed, and hospitals issued appeals for blood donations. Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the incident and called for a thorough investigation.
In other news, Gazans returning through the newly reopened Rafah crossing with Egypt described security checks conducted by a local Palestinian militia linked to Israel. According to BBC Middle East correspondent Lucy Williamson, two Gazan women who passed through the crossing on Monday reported being searched by members of the Abu Shabab militia, also known as the Popular Forces, at an Israeli military checkpoint inside the Gaza Strip. Lamia Rabia, who was traveling with her children, described being escorted by Israeli forces to the checkpoint.
Meanwhile, Google executives are facing pressure from nearly 900 full-time employees over the company's ties to the federal government's immigration enforcement, as reported by BBC Technology. The employees, in an open letter published on Friday, demanded more transparency regarding the use of Google's technology within the US government. Google has contracts to provide federal agencies with cloud services and has links to work being done on federal immigration enforcement. One Google employee of seven years found it "mind-boggling" that the company was maintaining these ties.
In business news, reports from National Highways revealed that many smart motorways are failing to deliver the expected value for money. Two schemes, involving sections of the M25 and the M6, were found to be offering "very poor" value, according to BBC Business Correspondent Theo Leggett. The AA, representing motorists, described the schemes as a "catastrophic waste of time, money and effort." Only three out of sixteen projects across England were on track to deliver the anticipated financial benefits, although most were delivering safety benefits as originally forecast, National Highways said.
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