At least three people are dead and 50 others wounded after a bomb ripped through a Shia Muslim procession in central Pakistan, officials said.
Security was high on Thursday as the religious minority marked Ashura, the 10th day of the holy month of Muharram, a flashpoint for sectarian violence in previous years.
“We have confirmation of three dead and 50 injured from the blast at the procession site,” said a senior government official in the city of Bahawalnagar, in Punjab province.
Social media videos showed bleeding victims lying on a road being helped by members of the public.
A local police officer, Kashif Hussain, also confirmed the death toll to AFP.
“The nature of the explosion is not yet clear as a team is still collecting evidence from the scene,” he said.
Authorities have suspended mobile phone services in major cities as a security measure during Ashura processions. Residents in many urban centres were experiencing signal jams on Thursday. The streets leading to procession routes were also blocked.
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