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ISLAMABAD, April 12 (AFP) - At least 15 people were killed and 20 injured in a grenade attack on a Shi’ite Muslim mosque in a northwestern Pakistani town, a Shi’ite political party spokesman said Wednesday. "The attackers first hurled a grenade and then opened fire with automatic weapons," Izhar Bukhari, information secretary of the Shi’ite Tehreek-i-Jafferia (TJP), said following the attack late Tuesday in the town of Malhowali, Attock district. Nine people were killed instantly and six died later in hospital, he said, adding that the victims included five children. Police have confirmed at least 13 – including a police guard – were killed in the attack, and said one suspect had been arrested. Nur Muhammad, an official at the local police station, said that "the attackers first killed the policeman with the burst of a Kalashnikov" assault rifle. The mosque was packed with people participating in a religious ceremony to mark the Muslim holy month of Muharram when the Shi’ites commemorate the 7th century martyrdom of Imam Hussain, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. Bukhari said the grenade was thrown from the roof of an adjacent mosque of the Sunni sect; allegedly by activists of a Sunni group Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP). The party has denied involvement. Following the incident, troops were deployed in volatile cities and towns throughout Punjab, the country's largest province, where sectarian violence last year claimed scores of lives. A provincial government official said the troops would assist the civil administration in maintaining security during the current religious rituals. The Shi’ite religious party, Tehreek Ittehad-i-Islami, has asked the government to crackdown on those responsible for creating sectarian tensions. Party chief Riaz Hussain Naqvi said in a statement "both internal and external elements could be behind the gruesome incident," and warned that, if unchecked, the situation could degenerate into "wider sectarian unrest." The authorities have stepped up security ahead of the Muharram rituals, which will culminate with the observance of Ashura, or the 10th day of Muharram, on Sunday with Shi’ite processions to mourn the death of Iman Hussain. Officials said police and paramilitary troops would use sniffer dogs to detect explosives during the processions. The two Muslim communities equally respect Imam Hussain but differ on religious rites. Violence involving Muslim sects has claimed at least 300 lives over the past two years. Tuesday's attack was the worst since General Pervez Musharraf seized power after toppling the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a military coup last October. It follows the killing of a central TJP leader Wiqar Naqvi, his son and driver by unidentified gunmen in Karachi on Friday at the start of Muharram.
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