US, UK condemn bomb attack

US ambassador and British high commissioner to Bangladesh have condemned the bomb attack that killed one person and injured 87 others at Huseni Dalan in old part of Dhaka early today.

US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Stephens Bloom Bernicat today said, “I'm shocked by the senseless attack on a Shia Ashura gathering outside Old Dhaka.”

"I'm shocked by the senseless attack on a Shia Ashura gathering outside Old Dhaka, and offer my deepest condolences to the victims and their families," she said in a Facebook statement.

Bangladesh has a long tradition of religious tolerance and communal harmony, she said. "We stand with the Bangladeshi people and the Bangladesh government in these critical moments."

"Horrified at attack on Shia Ashura procession," Gibson tweeted, saying such violence and intolerance is not acceptable. "My sympathies to those affected."