ISLAMABAD - The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the suicide bomb attack in Lahore Wednesday that killed at least 23 people, a US-based Islamic militant monitoring group has said.

The SITE Intelligence Group said that the Tehreek-e-Taliban militants made the claim in a statement posted on Turkish jihadist websites, Geo TV reported Thursday.

The group quoted the statement as saying that the attack “targeted the nest of evil in Lahore” and was a humble gift to the Mujahideen who suffer beneath the attacks of Pakistani forces in Swat.

It said that a vehicle laden with 100 kg explosives was blown up outside the security building in Lahore, the capital of Punjab province in Pakistan. The blast reduced the building to rubble.