A SUICIDE bombing ripped through a Shia Muslim procession in northern Pakistan yesterday, killing at least 31 people.

Two explosions occurred when an Ashura procession marking the 7th-century death of Imam Hussain, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, emerged from a mosque in a crowded bazaar in the town of Hangu. After the blasts hundreds of protesters went on a rampage, setting on fire shops, vehicles and government buildings. There were also clashes between groups of Sunnis and Shias. Security officials said that four people had been killed when gunmen opened fire on a bus.

In an attempt to restore order, the army was deployed and a curfew imposed. Sunni and Shia clerics used mosque loudspeakers to appeal for calm amid concern that the disturbance could spread across Pakistan.

In Karachi more than 3,000 Shias, chanting “Death to the Government”, staged a sit-in protest against the Hangu bombing.

Akram Durrani, the chief minister of the North West Frontier Province, said that a preliminary investigation showed the attack had been a suicide bombing. Hangu is close to the lawless tribal region which is a stronghold of Islamic militants backed by al-Qaeda. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombings yesterday but security officials blamed Sunni extremist groups.

Thousands of people have been killed in religious violence across Pakistan in recent years. Most of them have been Shias, who constitute 15 per cent of the country’s population.

Pakistan outlawed Islamic extremist groups after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States but extremists continue to carry out attacks. The Sunni militant groups, who demand that Shias be declared non-Muslims, have close ties with the Taleban insurgents fighting the coalition forces in Afghanistan.

The growing use of suicide bombers who target their rivals’ places of worship and religious processions has given a new dimension to the sectarian war. Both Sunnis and Shias deploy suicide bombers to inflict maximum casualties.

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