KARACHI, Pakistan Two bombs targeting Shi'ite Muslims exploded in Pakistan's largest city Friday, one outside a hospital treating victims from the first blast hours earlier. At least 25 people were killed and around 100 others wounded. Police appealed for calm following the strikes in the chaotic city of 16 million people. Karachi has a history of religious violence between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims, and has been tense in recent weeks due to deadly clashes between rival political parties. In late December, a bomb in the southern port city killed 44 Shi'ites attending a procession to mark Ashura, the anniversary of the death of revered Shi'ite figure Imam Hussein, sparking deadly riots. Friday's blasts coincided with Arbaeen, the final day of the annual 40-day mourning period for Hussein. One of Pakistan's many al-Qaeda linked Sunni extremist groups will be suspected in the twin attacks. The first blast targeted a bus carrying worshippers, most of them women and children, killing 12 and wounding 49, officials said. The bomb was attached to a motorcycle and detonated as the bus drove to an Arbaeen procession, witnesses said. One witness said it may have been a suicide bombing, but that could not be confirmed. The second bomb exploded outside the entrance to the emergency ward at Jinnah Hospital, which was packed with victims and relatives of those killed and wounded in the earlier attack. It was either hidden on a motorbike or in or close to an ambulance, a witness and a government official said.
