KARACHI: Mobile phone services in Karachi and Quetta, that were blocked after interior ministry's notification, have been resumed on Friday evening, DawnNews reported.

The networks were closed from 10:00 am (0500 GMT) and they were resumed after eight hours of blockage.

An official of interior ministry said that the cellular services were blocked in provincial capitals of Sindh and Balochistan to 'prevent' terror attacks at the start of Muharram.

“We had intelligence reports about (the) possibility of a very big terrorist attack in Karachi and it was because of this reason that the mobile phone service was shut down,” senior police official Javed Odho had told AFP.

He said the decision was taken after top police officials held lengthy meetings to deal with the threats. “Pros outweighed cons. This was the only effective way to block conversation of terrorists, who use mobile phones to plan attacks.”

Authorities feared that mobile telephones could be used to coordinate attacks or trigger a remote-controlled bomb.

Akbar Durrani, home secretary of Baluchistan had said  “At least eight provincial districts have been declared sensitive and the army troops will be on call to deal with any untoward situation,”