Eleven people were killed in Pakistan when rival political parties shot at each other on Saturday during local elections in two of the country’s four provinces.
The violence erupted in Khairpur district, northwest of the port city of Karachi, the capital of southern Sindh province.
"The two groups belonging to the Pakistan Peoples Party, which rules Sindh province, and the Pakistan Muslim League, headed by a famous spiritual leader, Pir Sahab Pagara, clashed with each other just an hour before the end of polling time," local police official Pir Muhammad Shah told the French news agency AFP.
Pakistan's other two provinces held their local elections months ago.
Saturday was the first phase of a three-phase election in Sindh province and eastern Punjab province. Remaining phases will be held later this month and next month.
Over 20 million people are registered to vote in Punjab and 4.6 million in Sindh.
Voters directly elect government councilors who transfer administrative and financial powers to lower tiers of electoral bodies.
