QUETTA: At least two Shia Muslims and one other man were killed when a gunman opened fire in an apparent sectarian attack in southwest Pakistan on Sunday, police said.

The shooting took place on the outskirts of Quetta, the capital of oil and gas-rich Balochistan province, which borders Afghanistan and Iran.

“A gunman opened fire on two Shia Muslims and one of their companions, who were riding two motorbikes. All the three men died of their wounds on reaching hospital,” local police official Ameer Dashti told AFP.

The gunman -- who had been standing beside the road -- escaped after what appeared to have been a targeted sectarian killing, he said. A local intelligence official also confirmed the incident and casualties.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Balochistan is rife with religious militancy, sectarian violence between majority Sunni and minority Shia Muslims, and a regional insurgency waged by separatists.

Shia Muslims account for around a fifth of Pakistan's 167-million-strong population, which is dominated by Sunni Muslims.

Thousands of people have died in sectarian attacks since the late 1980s.