A convoy of Chinese nationals was attacked by a suicide bomber in northwest Pakistan killing five individuals.
According to Reuters, Mohammad Ali Gandapur, the regional police chief said that a suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden vehicle into a convoy of Chinese engineers traveling from Islamabad to their camp in Dasu, located in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Five Chinese nationals and their Pakistani driver were killed in the attack,” Gandapur initially stated. According to latest media reports, six Chinese nationals have been killed in the attack.
Dasu, a significant dam site, was targeted in a bus blast that resulted in the deaths of 13 individuals, including nine Chinese nationals in 2021.
Gandapur confirmed that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police swiftly arrived at the scene and commenced relief operations. He also reassured that the remaining individuals in the convoy had been safeguarded.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police rushed to the spot and began the relief operations.
The attack comes hours after armed fighters attacked a Pakistan naval airbase, resulting in the death of at least one paramilitary soldier, officials reported that security forces killed all five assailants in retaliatory fire. The assault on the Turbat base in southwestern Pakistan on Monday marked the second attack by ethnic Baloch fighters on a military facility in the past week.
“We narrowly avoided a significant loss,” stated Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office.
A Pakistan Navy spokesman confirmed that all five attackers were neutralized as they attempted to breach the base. Additionally, a military statement disclosed the loss of one paramilitary soldier in the skirmish.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a prominent separatist group in Balochistan, claimed responsibility for the assault. The BLA has a history of targeting Pakistani and Chinese interests in the region and beyond.
In February, Pakistan witnessed 97 militant incidents, causing 87 deaths and 118 injuries as stated by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.