Twin suicide attacks at Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine
Initial reports suggest that two suicide bombers attacked the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine killing eight people in Karachi on Thursday.
The blasts went off at the entrance as people were queuing up to enter the shrine. The bodies and injured have been taken to Jinnah and Civil hospital in Karachi.
Talking to the media at the site, Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza said the police had found two heads that possibly belonged to the suicide bombers.
Eight people were killed and over 60 injured as a result of the blast.
A number of political parties and trade associations have called for a strike tomorrow (Friday).
A strike was being observed in Karachi on the call of Sunni Wahdat Council in reaction to the killing of one of its leaders Maulvi Muhammad Ameen.
In a similar incident earlier in July, more than 35 people were killed in triple blasts at the Data Darbar in Lahore.
End of live updates.
10:05pm
Fauzia Wahab on Witness with Quatrina asks "Had there been cameras installed, would it have made any difference?"
PML-N leader Siddiqul Farooq says it is the federal government's fault that a consensus could be reached in Parliament on tackling terrorism.
9:55pm
Secretary Education Sindh says all schools will remain open tomorrow.
All Karachi Trade Union announces one day strike.
9:35pm
Express News reports the Taliban have claimed responsibility for the suicide attacks on the shrine.
9:20pm
Advisor to Chief Minister Sindh Sharmila Farooqui says that she visited the shrine a day earlier and the electronic gates and the metal detectors were working fine.
Farooqui says “suicide attack is a phenomenon that nobody in this world has been able to curtail.”
She says the security was on high alert and the arrangements were “next to perfect.”
The minister says that she herself is a follower of Abduallah Shah Ghazi and condemns the attack.
9:08pm
Several petrol pumps and markets have closed down around the city, after the blasts.
9:02pm
According to Express 24/7 reporter Ahmed Jung the first bomber was being checked at the main gate when he blew himself up, while the second blast took place at the steps which lead up to the shrine.
Express 24/7 reporter Masroor Hausen says unconfirmed reports suggest 90 people have been injured and some of them are in critical states.
9:00pm
Police officials claim to have capture a number of suspects who are being interrogated.
8:50pm
MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar says that his party and party chief have strongly condemned this act of cowardice, and that there was a nexus of criminal mafia and extremist elements operating in Karachi.
MQM has also announced one day of mourning.
8:40pm
According to a report in this paper, closed-circuit TV (CCTV) cameras put up all over the city to monitor traffic violations and suspicious activity have been off for the past four days.
8:10pm
More than 60 injured have been brought to the emergency wards, say hospital sources.
Bibi Pak Daman shrine in Lahore has also been closed.
8:00pm
Secretary of Auqaf committee has informed IG Sindh that he has ordered all shrines across Karachi be closed.
Members of the forensics lab are gathering evidence to uncover what was used to make the bomb.
According to hospital staff ten injured are in critical condition.
7:45pm
President Asif Zardari, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif and Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain have condemned the attacks.
7:40pm
The Sunni Tehreek has announced a three day mourning.
7:35pm
According to an eyewitness, the first blast occurred when a guard tried to stop a suicide bomber and he blew himself up.
7:30pm
Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza has said that two heads have been found at the site. He maintained that the security at the site was not lax. He indicated that the blasts might be 'suicidal' in nature.
7:25pm
According Seemi Jamali, head of emergency, over 50 injured have been brought to Jinnah Hospital.
According to Sindh Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza the blasts occurred at the gate of the shrine.
7:20pm
According to police reports the blasts occurred within the span of a few minutes.
7:15pm
A bomb disposal squad has been dispatched to the site.
The lights have been shut off at the shrine and law enforcement agencies are asking the public not to come near the shrine.
7:10pm
Initial reports suggest that the blasts were caused by a suicide bomber.
7:05pm
The injured are being shifted to Jinnah Hospital. Emergency has been declared at all hospitals in Karachi.
A large number of people were gathered at the shrine.