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Pakistan: Dozens dead in bomb attack on Quetta market Pakistan: Dozens dead in bomb attack on Quetta market
(about 1 hour later)
At least 47 people have been killed and many more wounded in a bomb attack in a Shia-dominated part of the south-western Pakistani city of Quetta. At least 63 people have been killed and many more wounded in a bomb attack in a Shia-dominated part of the south-western Pakistani city of Quetta.
As many as 130 people were injured in the bombing in the Hazara town area of the city, police say. As many as 180 people were injured in the bombing in the ethnic Hazara area of the city, police say.
Police officer Wazir Khan Nasir said: "The Shia community was the target". It's the second major attack on the Hazara community there in five weeks.
Tensions have been high in Quetta amid claims by the Shia community that the authorities are failing to protect them from sectarian attacks.Tensions have been high in Quetta amid claims by the Shia community that the authorities are failing to protect them from sectarian attacks.
The bomb went off in a crowded vegetable market as people, many of them women and children, were shopping for groceries in the late afternoon. Police officer Wazir Khan Nasir said: "The Shia community was the target".
A spokesman for the banned Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi was quoted by Reuters news agency as claiming responsibility for the attack.
Angry crowds
The bomb went off in the late afternoon in a crowded market area housing grocery stalls, language schools and a computer centre.
The district is dominated by ethnic Hazaras, who mostly belong to the Shia Muslim minority in Pakistan.
Victims were rushed to several hospitals in the area.Victims were rushed to several hospitals in the area.
Mr Nasir said the bomb was detonated by remote control, but the Associated Press quoted another officer as saying it may have been planted in a rickshaw. "I saw many bodies of women and children," an eyewitness at a hospital told Reuters. "At least a dozen people were burned to death by the blast."
Angry crowds are reported to have gathered in the area following the blast, pelting police and refusing to let them and rescue workers reach the scene of the blast. Mr Nasir, a senior local police officer, said the "explosion was caused by an improvised explosive device fitted to a motorcycle," although another report said it may have been planted in a rickshaw.
Since the last bomb attack in Quetta, and following the protests by the Hazara community, the Pakistan government sacked Baluchistan's chief minister, Nawab Aslam Raisani, but has yet to arrest the culprits behind the attack.
This came as no surprise to the Hazara community who have yet to see the Pakistan government take action against the Sunni extremist group Lashkari-Jhangvi.
Many Hazaras feel the government is not doing enough, allowing groups to act freely against Shias.
With frequent targeted killings and bomb explosions in Quetta, the Hazaras are living in a state of fear.
Many are apprehensive to leave their homes and those who work in areas that are deemed dangerous are told by their employers to stay at home.
Angry crowds are reported to have gathered in the area immediately following the blast, pelting police and initially refusing to let them and rescue workers reach the scene of the blast.
The police raised the death toll several times through the day.
Quetta's minority Shia community have been angered by what they say is a lack of protection for them against sectarian attacks by Pakistani Sunni militants.Quetta's minority Shia community have been angered by what they say is a lack of protection for them against sectarian attacks by Pakistani Sunni militants.
Last month, at least 92 people were killed in a bomb attack and 121 were wounded when suicide bombers blew themselves up at a crowded snooker club in a Shia-dominated area of Quetta.Last month, at least 92 people were killed in a bomb attack and 121 were wounded when suicide bombers blew themselves up at a crowded snooker club in a Shia-dominated area of Quetta.
The banned Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi said it carried out the attacks on 10 January, one of the deadliest days of bombings in Pakistan in recent years. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi said it carried out the attacks on 10 January, one of the deadliest days of bombings in Pakistan in recent years.
The Shia community refused to bury the dead until they received assurances of security from the authorities. Following talks with Shia representatives from Quetta, Pakistan's Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf sacked Balochistan's chief minister.The Shia community refused to bury the dead until they received assurances of security from the authorities. Following talks with Shia representatives from Quetta, Pakistan's Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf sacked Balochistan's chief minister.
Quetta is the capital of Balochistan province, which borders Iran and Afghanistan and has been plagued by a separatist rebellion as well as sectarian violence.Quetta is the capital of Balochistan province, which borders Iran and Afghanistan and has been plagued by a separatist rebellion as well as sectarian violence.