Pakistan official says 17 killed in suicide attack on Shiite pilgrims in southwest
QUETTA, Pakistan - A government official says a suicide bomber driving a vehicle packed with explosives rammed into a bus carrying Shiite Muslim pilgrims in southwest Pakistan, killing 17 people.
Tufail Ahmed says over 20 people were wounded in the attack Sunday in Baluchistan province's Mastung district.
The blast completely destroyed the bus that was hit and damaged a second bus carrying Shiites that was close by.
An eyewitness who was travelling in the second bus told Geo TV that the pilgrims were headed to neighbouring Iran, a majority Shiite country that is a popular religious tourism destination. The eyewitness did not provide his name.
Pakistan has experienced a spike in killings over the last year by radical Sunni Muslims targeting Shiites who they consider heretics, especially in Baluchistan.
