KARACHI, Feb 22: Nine people were shot dead and seven others wounded by three attackers outside an Imambargah in Rafah- i-Aam Society on Saturday evening.

Police and witnesses said that three men on a motorbike stopped in front of a tea shop adjacent to Imambargah Muntazirul Mehdi.

Two of them, armed with AK-47 rifles, alighted the motorbike and opened fire on the tea shop and those entering the Imambargah to offer the Maghribain prayers. The attackers then fled.

Seven bodies and eight wounded were taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre where another victim succumbed to wounds. Another dead was removed from the spot to his home.

The dead were identified as Khadim Hussain; Yawar Abbas, 22; Mohabbat Ali, 25; Ramzan Ali, 18; Mohammad Ali, 13; Saqib, 17; and Mohammad Ali, 28. Two others remained unidentified at the hospital.

The wounded were identified as Imtiaz Hussain, Rashid Hussain, Mohammad Issa, Zahur Ahmed, Mohammad Ali, Basharat Hussain and Shamsullah.

Tension gripped the entire locality falling under the Al Falah police limits. Shops and markets in Al-Falah and nearby Shah Faisal Colony were closed, and roads and streets turned deserted. The police and rangers had started patrolling the locality.

Shops and markets were also closed down in Ancholi where the bodies were sent. Four of the bodies would be flown to Gilgit on Sunday. Unknown miscreants set a truck on fire near Sohrab Goth late night, fire brigade sources said.

One of the injured, Imtiaz, a student of BCom part I, said: “We were watching the cricket match. We switched off the television as the prayers time approached. Some of us were coming out of the tea shop and some others were entering the Imambargah/mosque when the shooting started. I fell down to save my life, but a bullet hit me”.

Ali Mohammad, the father of deceased Mohammad Ali, said: “We have been living in this locality for the past many years. My son got married two months ago. He went to offer prayers when this horrible incident took place and my son lost his life”.

A witness, Aqib Hussain, said: “I was standing near my motorbike and talking to one of my friends at some distance from the Imambargah when I heard gunshots. I ran into a narrow lane to save my life.”

Witnesses said the police were immediately informed on Madadgar 15, but they came after more than half an hour.

Talking to reporters at the JPMC, Sindh Home Minister Syed Sardar Ahmed termed the shooting a conspiracy to destabilize the democratic government.

He linked the killings to the murder of Khalid Bin Waleed, a leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement. He said Mr Waleed was playing a significant role in creating harmony between various sects and those who had killed Mr Waleed were behind today’s killings.

He said the government had already intensified the security at all Madaris and worship places. In reply to a question how did the incident take place if the security at Imambargah Muntazirul Mehdi had been adequate, he said an inquiry would be conducted to know whether or not the security had been provided to the Imambargah.

SSP Investigation (Homicide) Manzoor Mughal said: “It appears to be sectarian killings and of course, an act of terrorism.”

ALTAF CONDEMNS: In a statment from London, MQM chief Altaf Hussain condemned the killings.

He said it was an act of terrorism, an attempt to incite sectarian hatred to sabotage the peace of the city.

He demanded of the government to inquire into the incident and arrest those involved in the incident.