Bomb blast kills 3, wounds several at Shiite procession in Pakistan

Bomb kills 3 at Shiite procession in Karachi

KARACHI, Pakistan — Police say a bomb blast at a major Shiite Muslim procession has killed three people and wounded several more in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi.

Live television footage showed an explosion striking the procession on a main road, and ambulances rushing to and from the scene.

Shiites are marking Monday the holy day of Ashura.

Police officer Maqsood Ahmad said the bomb killed three people and wounded several more. Another police offcer, Raja Umer Khatab, said some in the crowd began firing shots into the air in protest.

Security has been tightened across Pakistan for Ashura, which is the 10th day of the holy month of Muharram, a month of mourning often marred by bombings and fighting between Pakistan’s Sunni Muslim majority and its Shiite minority.