Blast in Karachi kills two, injures 12

Two people were killed and 12 injured in an explosion on Friday near a bus stop in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, a media report said. Most of the victims were policemen.

The explosives, which were planted on a motorcycle near the Murghi Khana bus stop in Karachi's Quaidabad area, detonated as a bus of the Sindh Police's special security unit passed by, Dawn Online quoted a police officer as saying.

Around 50 police personnel were in the bus at the time of the blast.

Rescue and emergency teams were despatched to the blast site, while the victims were shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) for treatment.

Two policemen succumbed to their wounds at the hospital, the report said.

A JPMC official confirmed that 12 wounded people had been brought in to the hospital for treatment. She added that the condition of one of the wounded people was critical.

Most of the victims suffered ball-bearing and shrapnel injuries, the official added.

Security personnel reached the spot and cordoned off the area as a probe into the incident was launched.

Fear and panic gripped the area following the blast, which was heard far and wide. The blast also damaged other vehicles in its vicinity.