ISLAMABAD: Three Chinese engineers working at a key copper-gold project in southwestern Balochistan province were injured in a suicide bombing on Saturday, security officials said.
Workers at the Saindak Copper-Gold Project in Dalbandin in Chaghai district were targeted by the bomber while they were traveling in a bus, according to a security agency report shared with Arab News.
The outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility on Twitter and released a photograph of the alleged attacker.
Two security personnel from the Frontier Corps, who were guarding the Chinese employees, were also hurt in the attack.
The security report identified the injured Chinese as Liyanleng, Yov Riwei and Houxiaohv.
Officials said the three men are in a stable condition. They were taken to Karachi for medical care after receiving treatment in Dalbandin.
According to the report, a suicide bomber detonated a device near the Chinese bus at about 10 a.m.
“The Chinese were coming from Saindak project. When they approached Dalbandin Airport, suddenly a car appeared and hit the bus. The suicide bomber inside the car blew himself up,” the report said.
Law enforcement agencies rushed to the scene and took the injured men to Sheikh Zahid Hospital Dalbandin for treatment.
Jayind Baloch, a spokesman for the BLA, said an activist named Rehan Baloch carried out the attack.
A Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mohammad Faisal, condemned the attack in a Twitter post, saying: “Pakistan strongly condemns the Dalbandin terrorist attack today in which some Chinese engineers and accompanying FC personnel were injured, all of whom are stable and being treated.
“Pakistan remains unflinchingly undeterred in the face of such dastardly terrorist acts.”
Analysts in Balochistan said it is the first time a Baloch armed group has carried out a suicide attack.
“I am surprised at the BLA’s suicide bombing. I think the group has learned the tactics from the other militant groups,” senior Baloch journalist Ahmad Baloch told Arab News.
Three Chinese engineers hurt in Balochistan suicide attack
Three Chinese engineers hurt in Balochistan suicide attack
- The Chinese engineers were working at a key copper-gold project in southwestern Balochistan when a suicide bomber targeted a Chinese bus
- Pakistan has strongly condemned the Dalbandin attack
China warns US ‘plotting’ on Taiwan could lead to ‘confrontation’
- Foreign Minister Wang said that any future “instigating and plotting to split China through Taiwan, crossing China’s red line”
MUNICH: Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi warned the United States on Saturday against “plotting” on Taiwan, saying it could lead to a “confrontation” with China.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Foreign Minister Wang said that any future “instigating and plotting to split China through Taiwan, crossing China’s red line.”
“This could very likely lead to a confrontation between China and the United States,” he said.
He added that he hoped Washington would pursue a “positive and pragmatic” approach, “but we are also prepared to deal with various risks.”
China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out the use of force to bring under its control.
The United States has long been the democratic island’s most important backer and biggest arms provider, and Taiwan would be heavily reliant on US support in a potential conflict with China.
