By msnbc.com wire services
MULTAN, Pakistan - An explosion on Sunday near a Shiite Muslim procession in the central Pakistani town of Khanpur killed 18 people and wounded at least 30, police and emergency services officials said.
The explosion went off as the mourners came out of a mosque, District Police Chief Sohail Chatta told The Associated Press. The bomb appeared to have been planted ahead of time in the path of the procession, he said.
Hundreds of Pakistani Shiites had gathered in the town of Khanpur in Punjab province for a traditional procession to mark the end of 40 days of mourning following the anniversary of the death of Imam Hussein, a revered seventh-century figure.
The processions of Shiite Muslims, who make up about 20 percent of Pakistan's population, are often attacked by militant Sunni Muslim groups who consider them apostates of Islam.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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