Gunmen on motorcycles killed at least four people at a
religious gathering of Shi'ite Muslims in Karachi, Pakistan's
largest city, on Saturday, police said, in the latest attack
claimed by the Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi's Al Alami
faction.
The shooting took place in the North Nazimabad neighborhood of
the sprawling metropolis of more than 18 million people, where
sectarian, ethnic and political violence is common.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi's Al Alami faction, which targets Shi'ites and
Pakistan's security forces, killed more than 60 police cadets in
the southwestern city of Quetta on Monday in an attack in
conjunction with Islamic State.
But it said it carried out this attack on its own.
"Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Al Alami accepts responsibility for those
killed in this attack, and we announce that there is no room for
the enemies of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad in Pakistan,"
said Ali bin Sufyan, the group's spokesperson, in a statement.
Provincial police chief Allah Dino Khwaja told reporters men on
two motorcycles fired on the gathering.
Four people were killed and another three wounded, Nasir Aftab,
a senior police officer, said.
Violence and crime has dropped significantly in Karachi since
the launch of a paramilitary operation in the city three years ago,
but targeted attacks still occur frequently.
Shi'ite Muslims make up about 20 percent of Pakistan's 190
million people, and sectarian attacks against them - including
bombings and targeted attacks - have become increasingly common in
recent years.
Since 2002, more than 2,500 Shi'ite Muslims have been killed in
such attacks, according to data gathered by the South Asia
Terrorism Portal. At least 23 people have been killed in such
attacks this year, it said.