Landmark Pakistan election marred by Karachi unrest

Unrest in Pakistan's biggest city Karachi has marred landmark national and provincial polls. A high turnout was reported nationwide but Pakistan's election commission said it had been unable to carry out "free and fair elections" in Karachi. In the worst election-day violence, 11 people were killed in the bombing of a political office in the city. The vote marks Pakistan's first transition from one civilian government to another in its 66-year history. Voting was extended for an hour across the country before closing at 18:00 (13:00 GMT). Counting has now begun in some areas. But polls are expected to remain open for three hours in seven constituencies in Karachi where voting was delayed because ballot boxes and papers had not arrived on time. Continue reading the main story Latest Lyse Doucet Chief international correspondent lyse doucet @BBCLyseDoucet ECP announces re-polling 40+ polling stations NA-250. Ordered polling these constituencies stopped immediately. Via @dawn_com #pakvotes 7 minutes ago lyse doucet @BBCLyseDoucet A salute to #Pakistan journalists incl colleagues @BBCUrdu - covering every twist & turn of election & making a difference #pakvotes 58 minutes ago lyse doucet @BBCLyseDoucet #Pakistan polling has ended in all constituencies except 7 in Karachi. Now its the counting..then the conclusions! #Pakvotes 1 hour ago lyse doucet @BBCLyseDoucet "99% of voting #Pakistan has been fine, so why are you focusing on the 1%? I don't think this is right" ECP presser #pakvotes 1 hour ago lyse doucet @BBCLyseDoucet "People should without fear..military has assured me they will increase security next few hours" ECP presser #pakvotes #Pakistan 1 hour ago loading Content from Twitter. Learn more about content from Twitter . Read more from Lyse Pakistan's election commission said it was "investigating reports of threats made to election officials" and that there would be "no compromise" on the fairness of the poll. Turnout is believed to have been high. An election commission spokesman said they hoped for a figure of 60-80%. The turnout in 2008 was 44%. Karachi violence The Pakistani Taliban have threatened to carry out suicide attacks. About two hours after polling started, a bomb attack was reported in Karachi, apparently targeting an Awami National Party (ANP) candidate outside the party's political office. Eleven people were killed and more than 40 others were wounded, police told BBC News. Local ANP candidate Amanullah Mahsud was injured but not seriously. The attack happened in the Landhi district of Karachi, which known for Taliban activity. Another ANP candidate and his son were shot dead close to the area last week. Sporadic violence linked to the election was reported in several other areas of the country. Seven people were hurt outside a polling station in the north-western city of Peshawar when a bomb went off attached to a motorcycle A suicide bomber blew himself up after police prevented him from entering another polling station in Peshawar, police told AFP A clash between two groups at a polling station in Chaman on the border with Afghanistan left least three people dead and several others hurt An explosion was also reported in Quetta in the south-west At least four people were hurt in a blast in Mardan in the north-west Counting is now underway in some districts The Taliban have been blamed for numerous attacks throughout the campaign on Pakistan's three most prominent liberal parties. The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) along with the Karachi-based Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) and the ANP have been singled out for threats, and were forced to curtail their campaigning as a result. Militants have so far avoided targeting the campaigns of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of Nawaz Sharif and the Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice) party of Imran Khan, who is recovering in hospital after a fall at a party rally. Pakistan's election commission said in a press conference that two ballot boxes had been stolen in Punjab and that they could be "accounted for". 'We want change' Tens of thousands of troops had been deployed at polling stations to ensure security. In the run-up to the election, more than 100 people died in election-related violence. Before polls opened, Pakistan sealed its borders with Iran and Afghanistan in an effort to keep foreign militants at bay. Continue reading the main story 11 May elections Polls opened at 08:00 local time (03:00 GMT) and close at 17:00 86,189,802 registered voters 5,000 are standing for 342-seat National Assembly, 272 are directly elected. 11,692 Provincial Assembly candidates 51 candidates are vying for the NA-48 constituency seat in Islamabad More than 600,000 security and army personnel will be deployed to guard against possible attacks More than 73,000 polling stations - 20,000 of which are deemed a security risk Polls will mark the first time that a civilian government has completed a full five-year term and handed over to an elected successor Politicians and parties Bid to end ballot box fraud Economy confronts Pakistan's leaders Officials said the borders would remain closed for the next three days. Queues started forming before polling stations opened at 08:00 (03:00 GMT) on Saturday. Abdul Sattar, 74, said: "We want change, we are really fed up with old faces coming back to power every time and doing nothing for the nation." While the streets of Islamabad were largely deserted, areas around polling stations were described as filled with crowds. At a polling station on the outskirts of the capital, BBC World Affairs correspondent Mike Wooldridge said around 1,000 of the 4,000 registered voters had cast their ballots by midday, including a large proportion of women. The BBC's Saba Eitizaz in Peshawar reported long queues of women, with many first-time voters. Right-wing religious party Jamaat-e-Islami complained that some of its voters had been harassed and announced it was boycotting the vote in Karachi and areas of Hyderabad, reports said. Mr Sharif, who was deposed as prime minister in a military coup 14 years ago, is seen as favourite to return for a third term of office. As he voted in Lahore, the former PM said he was hopeful of victory.