Blasts rip through crowds in Indian tourist city

At least 20 people were feared dead after a series of bombs exploded in the historic Indian tourist city of Jaipur today.

The five blasts ripped through crowded parts of the ancient city in western India.

The explosions were in markets and several other areas of the city in Rajasthan, a region dotted with palaces and temples that draw hundreds of thousands of Indian and foreign tourists every year.

They were “obviously a terror attack,” Rajasthan’s police chief, AS Gill said.

The first blast took place at 7.25 pm (2.55pm Irish time), police said, and another reportedly hit a market near a temple dedicated to the Hindu monkey god Hanuman. Tuesdays are the day of worship set aside for Hanuman, and the temple was packed with people offering prayers on the way home from work.

Another blast took place near the Johari Bazaar, the city’s jewellery market, a popular destination for tourists.

The tourist season, however, ended in March and there were no immediate indications that foreigners had been caught in the explosions.