At least 30 killed and 100 injured in bomb blast at Shah Noorani holy site in Pakistan

At least 30 people were killed and 100 were injured after a bomb blast at a religious shrine in Pakistan on Saturday (12 November).

The explosion took place at the holy site of Shah Noorani near Hub in the southwestern province of Balochistan.

Hundreds of people every day visit the site, which is sacred to Sufis.

"Thirty people have been killed and 70 injured in the blast, including women and children," Tehsildar Javed Iqbal told Dawn News.

The explosion is said to have occurred where a Dhamaal, a Sufi dance, was taking place, and several hundred were thought to be there at the time.

Men, women and children are all believed to be among the dead.

Dawn News reported the challenges emergency services faced in getting to the casualties.

"Emergency services are facing difficulty in reaching the site of the incident due to its remote location and poor communication infrastructure," it reported. "The shrine is also located in hilly terrain, further adding to the difficulties being faced by emergency services.

"No major hospital is located near the shrine, and the injured will be shifted to Karachi for further treatment. Reportedly the injured are being shifted in private vehicles."

No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, but Balochistan Home Minister Mir Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti said "those responsible will be held accountable".

Balochistan, home to 13 million people, is Pakistan's largest but least-developed region. Its problems trace back to the country's independence in 1947 where Baloch nationalists have resisted Pakistani rule.

According to Dawn News, the area has experienced over 1,400 incidents targeting minorities in the last 15 years.