At least 52 people have been killed and dozens more have been injured in a suicide bomb attack in Pakistan, officials have said.
The bombing happened near a Mosque in Mastung, a district in the tense southwestern province of Baluchistan, according to government administrator Atta Ullah.
The injured were taken to nearby hospitals with some in a critical condition.
A senior police officer, Mohammad Nawaz, was among the dead, Mr Ullah said.
At the time, people were gathering for a religious procession to mark the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, which is a public holiday.
It comes days after police were asked to remain on maximum alert over fears celebrations could be targeted.
No group has claimed responsibility for the blast, which comes against a backdrop of attacks claimed by militant groups in the west of the country, ahead of national elections due to be held in January next year.
Deputy inspector general of police Munir Ahmed said: “The bomber detonated himself near the vehicle of the deputy
superintendent of police.”
Interior minister Sarfraz Bugti branded the attack a “very heinous act”.
The injured were taken to nearby hospitals
The gas-rich province at the border of Afghanistan and Iran has witnessed a low-level insurgency by Baluch nationalists for more than two decades.
Baluch nationalists initially wanted a share of provincial resources, but they later launched an uprising calling for independence.
In July, more than 40 people were killed in a suicide bombing in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province at a
religious political party’s gathering.
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