Shiites and Police Clash in Karachi
Shiite Muslims enraged by a mosque bombing that killed 20 worshipers battled police and burned American fast-food restaurants Tuesday as the government struggled to contain a third day of violence in Pakistan’s largest city.
Mass funerals for the victims of Monday’s attack sparked what appeared to be orchestrated rioting as hundreds of youths rampaged near the wrecked Imam Bargah Ali Raza mosque, throwing stones at police and setting fire to shops and buses.
Along a quarter-mile stretch of Karachi’s main road, men perched on roofs fired at police and paramilitary rangers.
Police official Asad Ashraf Malik said four officers were wounded and 150 people were arrested. He said about a dozen shops and restaurants were burned, including a KFC and a McDonald’s.
The city has seen three turbulent weeks since a May 7 suicide attack at a Shiite mosque killed 22 people. The drive-by shooting Sunday of a prominent Sunni cleric triggered more unrest.
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