Eight killed in attack on Pakistan Shiite ceremony

The faithful were gathered to celebrate the holy day of Ashura, which marks the death of the prophet Muhammad's nephew. Riots and armed clashes with police followed the explosion.

Islamabad (AsiaNews/Agencies) - An explosion and gunfire hit a procession of Shiite Muslims in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least four people and injuring many others, police said.

The attack in Hangu, a town in North West Frontier Province, happened as the minority Shiites marked Ashura, a mourning ceremony for the death of Mohammed's grandson in the seventh century.

Officials said they suspected militants linked to Sunni Muslims. "So far the casualties are eight dead and there are varying figures of people injured in the incident," Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao said. Police said six were killed and 45 injured.

"The situation is very bad in the town" a senior police official from Hangu said. The explosion erupted in a bazaar as hundreds of people processed from the main Shia mosque, the official said. Pilgrims reacted by burning shops and cars and clashing with police. Police said gunfire was still going on in Hangu amid general panic.

Police have been deployed in force across Pakistan for a number of days ahead of the Ashura ceremony, which is a favourite target of militants from the majority Sunni community.

While the two communities generally live in harmony, thousands of Shiite and Sunni Muslims have been killed in Pakistan in recent years in bomb blasts, suicide attacks and targeted killings.

• PAKISTAN
• ISLAM
• MUSLIMS
• SUNNIS
• SHIITES
• FUNDAMENTALISM
• EXTREMISM
• ATTACKS