India on alert after mosque attack

Hundreds of police in riot gear have deployed throughout the mostly deserted streets of Hyderabad after a bomb blast at a mosque.

Most shops closed for a daylong strike on Saturday to protest Friday's attack at the 17th-century Mecca mosque in the southern Indian city.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack that killed 11 people and the ensuing clashes with police that left five more dead.

Officials refused to publicly say who they suspect.

Authorities across India were told to be alert for any signs of Hindu-Muslim clashes, and top officials called for calm.

Protesters planted black mourning flags across the city, and families of those killed prepared for funerals.

Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh state, where Hyderabad is located, called the bombing an act of "intentional sabotage on the peace and tranquility in the country."
Manmohan Singh, India's prime minister, also condemned the attack, the second on a mosque in a year, and urged Indians to remain peaceful.