Bomb blast kills 16, injures 40 in Pakistan's Sindh
At least 16 people have lost their lives in a bomb blast during a ceremony commemorating the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam, in Pakistan's southern province of Sindh.
At least 40 others also sustained injuries in the explosion on Friday, Zafar Iqbal Awan, a local police officer in the district of Jacobabad said.
“It was a suicide attack as the head and some other body parts of the suicide bomber were found at the site,” he added.
The attack comes a day before Ashura, which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, along with 72 of his companions, in the Battle of Karbala.
Imam Hussein’s martyrdom is considered by Shia Muslims as a symbol of the struggle against injustice and the need to preserve the purity of Islam.
On Thursday, a bomb attack targeted a Shia mosque in the town of Chalgari, located some 170 kilometers (105 miles) southeast of Balochistan’s provincial capital, Quetta. At least 10 people were killed and 12 others injured in the attack.
Shia Muslims had gathered at the mosque to observe Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar, when a bomber blew himself up there, according to provincial home minister Sarfraz Bugti.
No group has claimed responsibility for the bombings so far.
Pakistan’s Shia leaders have called on the Islamabad government to bring to justice those behind the ongoing bloodshed and targeted killings in the country.
International organizations and regional countries have also expressed concern over the killing of Shia Muslims across the Asian state.
Pakistan is facing security challenges after it joined an alliance with the US in the so-called war on terror. Thousands of Pakistanis have lost their lives and millions have been displaced in bombings and militant attacks sweeping across the country since 2001.
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