A bomber has struck a Shia Muslim gathering in the Pakistani Province of Punjab as pro-Taliban militants intensify their attacks against members of the community.
According to Pakistani officials, the bombing took place during evening prayers in the city of Sargodha when the mosque was packed with hundreds of worshippers.
Initial reports said that at least three worshippers had been killed and dozens of others had been injured in the explosion, a Press TV correspondent reported.
"We are gathering details about casualties," a senior police official said, adding that several of the wounded were in critical condition.
There has been a surge in bombings and shootings across Pakistan in recent weeks. On Saturday, sixteen Shia Muslims were killed and four others were wounded in an ambush in the remote tribal Kurram Agency.
Shia Muslims in Pakistan's Kurram Agency have been facing a humanitarian crisis since November 2007 when pro-Taliban militants cut off the area from the rest of the country.
According to local sources, more than 2,000 Shia Muslims have been killed in the region since the start of the campaign by pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants. |