Car bomb in Pakistan, 39 dead
 |  Victims of the bomb blast are treated at a local hospital. |
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 A celebration of Islamic militants turns into tragedy.
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(CNN) -- A car bomb exploded as Islamic militants celebrated in the central Pakistan city of Multan, killing at least 39 people and wounding dozens more, police and hospital sources said.
Police inspector general Talat Mahmood told CNN it appears the car bomb was detonated by remote control.
The blast rocked the area at around 4:30 a.m. Thursday (2330 GMT Wednesday) and caused a nearby transformer to blow up, making people think two bombs had gone off, Mahmood said.
Five police were among the wounded, with the death toll expected to rise. Hospitals have been put on alert to treat the wounded.
Pakistan has been hit by a spate of attacks in recent months. There has been no claim of responsibility for Thursday's attack.
Just last week, an explosion ripped through a Shiite Muslim mosque in the eastern Pakistani city of Sialkot during Friday prayers, killing several people and injuring dozens of others. (Full story)
In Thursday's attack, the bomb went off as 2,500 militants were leaving a celebration commemorating the anniversary of their leader's death. Mahmood said the car was parked at one of two exits.
Maulana Azam Tariq -- the chief of the banned Sunni extremist group, Sipah-e-Sahaba -- was shot dead in broad daylight a year ago in Islamabad.
Celebrations to mark the death have been taking place across Pakistan.
Multan is an industrial center with about 750,000 residents in central Pakistan, about 300 miles (483 km) south of Islamabad.
