JOIN US48 killed in Karachi twin blasts
Twin blasts ripped through a Shia-dominated area of the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi on Sunday, killing 28 people and wounding 140 others.
The first blast occurred outside an Imambargah (Shia prayer hall) in Abbas Town around 7 pm as people were leaving after prayers. The second explosion went off in the same area within 10 minutes, witnesses said.
The explosions caused extensive damage to residential buildings and destroyed several shops in the area, senior police officials said. The injured and deceased includes women and children. Many victims were trapped under the rubble as teams worked to rescue them.
“Initial investigations show that the first blast was of low intensity and planted in a motorcycle and the second one was of high intensity which went off in a car,” DSP Qamar Ahmed said.
A police officer said the blasts have completely destroyed some blocks of a residential apartment near the site, dozens of shops and two banks.
Seemi Jamali, a doctor at the state-owned Jinnah hospital, confirmed that they have recorded 10 deaths and were treating around 40 injured.
Another doctor at the Patel hospital located close to Abul Isphani road, said they had received eight bodies and four more people succumbed to injuries in hospital.
The explosions occurred at a time when the prime minister, high-profile leaders and top officials were in the city to attend the engagement ceremony of Sharmila Farooqi, an advisor to the Sindh chief minister.