QUETTA: Unknown armed men killed seven passengers on a Lahore-bound bus in southwest Pakistan’s Balochistan province late on Tuesday, officials said.
The attack took place in Barkhan, a district of southwestern Balochistan.
The province bordering Afghanistan and Iran is a key battleground in Pakistan’s decades-long fight against terrorists.
The group of around 40 armed men stopped multiple buses and vehicles, checking national identity cards before forcing the seven passengers off the bus and shooting them, deputy commissioner Waqar Khurshid Alam, a senior administrative official, told Reuters.
All seven victims were from central Punjab province, Alam said.
Khadim Hussain, assistant commissioner for the area, said the killings took place on a highway connecting Barkhan to the southern city of Dera Ghaza Khan in Punjab.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and the motive behind the killings was unclear.
Officials told Reuters that the area had been cordoned off but the attackers had escaped.
Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the incident and said that the killing of innocent people is a coward and heinous act.
“The terrorists are the enemies of peace and humanity. They want to mar the peace in Balochistan,” APP quoted the president as saying.
Moreover, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also expressed grief and sorrow over the incident and directed that the perpetrators be brought to justice at the earliest.
He emphasized that those who harm innocent and defenseless people will have to pay a very heavy price, as per Radio Pakistan.
“The sacrifices of innocent civilians will never go in vain,” the PM said, reaffirming the commitment to completely eliminate terrorism from the country.
On Friday, a bomb targeting a vehicle carrying coal miners killed at least 11 people and wounded six others.
Seven soldiers martyred; BLA claims responsibility
Last August, militants unleashed a wave of attacks in Pakistan, killing dozens of people.
The assaults targeted police stations, infrastructure, and civilians, including a roadside attack that left 23 dead after militants checked IDs and opened fire.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) took responsibility for that operation, which it called “Haruf” or “dark windy storm”.
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