bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Pakistan's largest city Karachi shut down yesterday to mourn 45 people killed by a car bomb in a Shiite Muslim neighbourhood, the latest in a series of devastating attacks as Pakistan prepares for elections.
Traffic was thin as educational institutions, businesses and markets closed after the local government announced one day of mourning and Shiite groups three days of mourning for those killed in Sunday's bombing.
The bomb exploded as worshippers were coming out of mosques in the neighbourhood of Abbas Town, ripping through two apartment blocks and trapping people under piles of rubble.
Those who survived but whose homes were damaged or destroyed were being housed temporarily in schools, officials said.
Local transport and traders' associations said they would not be working yesterday.
"There will be no public transport on the roads," said Karachi Transporters Association chief Irshad Bokhari.
Attique Mir, head of the Karachi Traders' Alliance, said shopping centres and malls as well as business activity would remain suspended.
Karachi is vital to Pakistan's economy, contributing 42 per cent of gross domestic product, 70 per cent of income tax revenue and 62 per cent of sales tax revenue. But the city is plagued by sectarian, ethnic and political violence that last year killed more than 2,200 people and which routinely forces closures, damaging businesses.
Yesterday, the stock market was open, but Mohammad Sohail of brokerage firm Topline Securities said there were fewer dealers and trading volumes were low.

Officials said 45 people, including women and children, were killed and around 150 others wounded in the attack. Although Abbas Town is a mainly Shiite neighbourhood, officials said some Sunni Muslims were also among the dead.
Police are preparing a list of those killed and are trying to identify the dead with the help of their relatives.
Pakistan's parliament is due to dissolve in two weeks in preparation for elections, but rising violence against Shiites, who make up around 20 per cent of the 180 million population, has raised serious questions about security.
Last year was the deadliest year on record for Shiites in Pakistan with more than 400 killed, according to Human Rights Watch.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a banned extremist Sunni group, claimed credit for bombing a shrine visited by Shiites in Shikarpur district last Monday and other attacks on Shiite Hazaras in the southwest this year which killed about 200 people.


Karachi shuts down for a day to mourn 45 car bomb victims

Medics and ordinary Pakistanis gather at the site of the car bomb explosion in Karachi on Sunday amid preparations for elections. Photo: AP

News

Asia

Largest city shuts down for a day to grieve for 45 killed in Sunday's explosion in Shiite area


Pakistan's largest city Karachi shut down yesterday to mourn 45 people killed by a car bomb in a Shiite Muslim neighbourhood, the latest in a series of devastating attacks as Pakistan prepares for elections.


Karachi shuts down for a day to mourn 45 car bomb victims

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Largest city shuts down for a day to grieve for 45 killed in Sunday's explosion in Shiite area

Largest city shuts down for a day to grieve for 45 killed in Sunday's explosion in Shiite area