A massive explosion ripped through a police compound in a busy commercial street in Pakistan's largest city Karachi today, killing at least 15 people, according to police and media reports.
The attack took place at the compound of the Criminal Investigation Department, just metres from the provincial chief minister's house, in the central Karachi district known as the "red zone" because of its high security, police said.
The US Consulate, five-star hotels and other important buildings are also within a couple of kilometres.
"The attackers first opened fire and then rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the building," senior police official Javed Akbar Riaz told Reuters.
"We suspect that it was a suicide attack," he said.
The building is used to hold and interrogate a number of militants, included those from banned organisations. It was not immediately clear how many were inside at the time of the attack.
Sharmila Farooqi, a spokeswoman for the Sindh provincial government, said at least 15 people were killed and more than 30 injured. Other officials put the number of injured at more than 70.
The blast left a crater about 40 feet across and 12 feet deep in front on the building. The building was gutted and some parts of nearby buildings collapsed.
Ambulances and official vehicles jammed the road where the blast had taken place. A Reuters photographer on the scene saw dozens of motorcycles destroyed and windows were shattered up to 2 km away. He also saw two wounded children evacuated from the scene.
"I heard shooting and then I came to the site and there were injured people screaming," said Sajid Khan, a bystander who was about 1 km away when the blast occurred. "Some women were screaming."
As the crowd looked on, rescue workers shouted Allah-u-Akbar (God is Great) as they removed slabs of cement and pulled out a body, its head covered with dust.
Close by, a security guard knelt in the rubble and sifted through a pile of bullet casings.
Reuters