At least 26 Shiite Muslim pilgrims were killed in Pakistan's south-western region on Tuesday when gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying them to Iran, police said, reported dpa.
The attack took place near Mastong city, some 49 kilometers south-west of Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province.
"Unknown number of attackers opened fire on the bus that was carrying around 50 people," said a local police officer, Shah Nawaz. "Later on they got on the bus and fired upon injured and surviving people."
"At least 26 people are killed and several are injured," added Shah Nawaz.
A spokesman of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a Sunni-Muslim extremist group that is affiliated with the Taliban and al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack.
Pakistan has a long history of violence between minority Shiite and majority Sunni Muslims that has claimed thousands of lives in a decades-long conflict.
But Shiite Muslims are at the receiving end these days across the country, mainly due to increasing power of extremist Sunni groups, as in Balochistan.
On August 31, a suicide bombing targeted Shiite Muslims returning to their homes after traditional Eid al Fitr prayers. At least 11 people died and around two dozens injured.