Mosque Attack Sparks Fatal Riot
KARACHI, Pakistan — At least six people were killed when a KFC restaurant was burned by a mob protesting the suicide bombing of a Shiite Muslim mosque, a senior police official said today.
Manzoor Mughal said four of the victims were burned and two died after hiding in a refrigeration unit. About 1,000 rioters also burned three banks, three gas stations and several vehicles.
In the mosque attack, a suicide bomber blew himself up during evening prayers Monday, killing one worshiper and wounding 20. The bomber slipped into the mosque during a gun battle with police that left another attacker and two officers dead.
Asif Ijaz, a police official, said the violence at the Madinatul Ilm Imambargah began when three attackers stole an automatic weapon from a police guard outside and shot him to death.
After other policemen opened fire, one attacker was killed and another wounded, and a second officer was slain, he said.
But the third attacker managed to get inside the mosque and detonated a bomb strapped to his body, Ijaz said. Four worshipers were seriously injured, and 16 were treated for lesser wounds, said Zafar Hussain, a mosque administrator.
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