Explosions hit Karachi

There has been a series of small explosions at 12 Shell petrol stations in the Pakistani city of Karachi.

The blasts have not caused any serious damage or injuries.

The explosions have been blamed on motorbike riders

It is not clear who is behind the attacks.

Reports quote police saying that the small explosives were placed by men on motorcycles.

"It is believed that the devices had been planted by some motorcyclists late Wednesday night when thousands of motorcyclists flooded city roads to celebrate the birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammad," the AFP news agency quoted Sindh province police chief, Kamal Shah, as saying.

Eyewitnesses say they heard loud explosions when the devices went off.

"I was inside my cabin when I heard the explosion," said Gul Rehman, who worked at a Shell station near the Karachi Press Club.

"I ran outside where my colleagues were standing by a kiosk but no one was hurt."

Western targets

Several attacks against Western targets have taken place in Karachi over the past year, ever since Pakistan joined the US-led war on terror.

The Royal-Dutch Shell Group is an Anglo-Dutch firm based in London but also has an American firm.

"Shell pumps will always be on the hit-list as it is a foreign enterprise and we have also taken precautions for the security of food chains KFC, Macdonalds and Pizza Hut," police chief Shah said.

Earlier this month, the United States issued a warning about a possible attack on the US consulate in Karachi using an aircraft packed with explosives.

In 2002, 12 Pakistanis were killed in a car bomb attack on the consulate.

And 11 French engineers were among 14 people who died in a suicide bombing last outside a Karachi hotel last year.

Several radical groups have warned President Pervez Musharraf that his decision to join the US-led war will backfire.