New Year celebrations: Stray bullets kill 3 in Karachi

At least 60 more were wounded despite high security.

KARACHI: Three people were killed and at least 60 wounded by stray bullets in the port city of Karachi Sunday as Pakistanis celebrated the New Year by firing their guns into the air, police said.

Officers were on high alert to avert any violence in almost all major cities in Pakistan, where New Year celebrations were traditionally quiet.

In Karachi, the country's biggest city, thousands of people took to the streets to see in 2012 but police prevented many from getting to the shores of the Arabian Sea citing security fears.

"Aerial firing on new year night killed three people. Fired bullets have also wounded more than 60," Hamid Parhair, provincial police surgeon told AFP.

Parhair said 36 people were taken to two government hospitals while the rest were treated for minor injuries at private hospitals.

Karachi, with a population of 18 million, is gateway to the Arabian Sea and provides the bulk of the democratically fragile country's income.

The city has recently faced its worst ethnic- and politically-linked unrest in 16 years, with more than 100 people killed in one week alone in October.