Police have named an Asian man who was killed in a suspected racially-motivated attack as Asaf Mahmood Ahmed of Bolton, Greater Manchester. Ahmed, 28, suffered severe head injuries in the attack Friday near Derby Ward Labour Club in Bolton, around 25 km northwest of the city of Manchester.

Ahmed, who was discovered by police officers, died at the scene despite resuscitation attempts. A post mortem was carried out on Saturday but the cause of death has not been released.

Police, who have arrested an 18-year-old man and a 15-year-old boy, said on Sunday they were treating it as a racist incident, the British Broadcasting Corporation reported.

"Language and comments that were overheard by witnesses at and immediately after the incident led them to believe this was a racist incident," said Superintendent Andy Durkin of Greater Manchester Police.

"I would like to stress that the motive for the attack remains unknown at this stage and is a significant line of inquiry. The cause of death has not been conclusively established and further tests are being carried out.

A mosque was firebombed in Bolton in the days following the Sep 11, 2001 terror strikes in the United States.