[Ammi]

Gunmen opened fire on dozens of people marching in a Mother's Day parade in New Orleans injuring 18, police have said.

The wounded included a boy and a girl, both 10 years old.

Two people have undergone surgery. Many of the victims have suffered grazes and most of the wounds are not life-threatening.

New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Ronal Serpas said: "At this time, we have no indication that anyone will perish from today's events."

Officers saw three people running from the scene immediately after gunshots from "maybe two different types of weapons" rang out, Supt Serpas said

As many as 400 people were taking part in the street parade but only about half were in the immediate area of the gunfire, which erupted at the junction of Frenchmen and North Villere Streets.

Officers were interspersed with the revellers, which is routine for such events.

The procession, known as a 'second-line' parade in which people dance down the street, often following a brass band, was organised by a social club called The Original Big 7.

The group was founded in 1996 at a housing project, according to its MySpace page.

The area where the shooting happened is a mix of low-income and middle-class homes, some boarded up

As of last year, the neighbourhood's population was about 60% of its level before Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005.

An FBI spokeswoman said investigators had no indication that the shooting was an act of terrorism.

"It's strictly an act of street violence in New Orleans," she said. "The southern city has one of the highest violent crime rates in the US."

Supt Serpas branded the attack as "selfish" and vowed to make swift arrests.

"I think what frustrates all of us is the selfishness of some people, and I think what frustrates all of us is that the great culture of this city sometimes stumbles a bit because of the selfish behaviour of some people," he said.

He added: "We'll get them. We have good resources in this neighbourhood."