The BBC's Zaffar Abbas reports (Dur 2'13")

A high court judge has been ordered to investigate the massacre of Shi-ite muslims in Pakistan.

At least four people are in a critical condition in hospital

More than 20 people died and up to 40 were injured, when gunmen opened fire on people who had gathered at a cemetery in Lahore to mark the anniversary of the death of a religious leader.

The armed men, who police suspect belong to a militant Sunni group known as the Friends of the Guardians of the Prophet, drove into the graveyard in a jeep and opened fire with automatic weapons. Eyewitnesses said they continued shooting for several minutes.

The massacre was described by police as a "religiously motivated terrorist attack" designed to kill as many people as possible.

Rioters tried to burn this police station

The incident triggered a wave of anger and Shi-ite muslims went on the rampage in Lahore, blocking roads and stoning cars.

Armed police were brought in after the youths set fire to a police station and two cars, and damaged several shops. Teargas was fired to disperse another group who were trying to burn two banks.

The Punjab chief minister Shahabaz Sharif described the killing as a "well conceived conspiracy to destabilise the government," and ordered a high court judge to investigate this "act of terrorism" and report within 15 days.

The massacre has caused anger and grief in Lahore

The massacre is one of the worst sectarian attacks in Punjab province where more than 140 people died last year in a wave of killings involving militant groups from both the Sunni and the minority Shi'ite communities.

Shi'ites comprise about 15% of Pakistan's population of more than 135 million people, the rest being mainly Sunni. Many Shi'ite mourners traditionally go to the Lahore graveyard on Sundays.

Soldiers have also been deployed in central Karachi when violence broke out between ethnic political parties.

Two people were shot dead and five others injured.
 

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