Five Chinese among six killed in Shangla suicide bombing

Five Chinese workers along with their driver were killed on Tuesday when a suicide bomber targeted their vehicle in Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Their vehicle plunged into a deep ravine off the mountainous Karakoram Highway after the bomber rammed his car into them and detonated his explosives, police said.

"Five Chinese and their local driver were killed in the attack," Muhammad Ali Gandapur, the Malakand regional police chief, said He added the vehicle was travelling between the Dasu hydroelectric dam site, under construction by the China Gezhouba Group Company, and the capital Islamabad.

The area had been attacked in the past as well. In a blast on a bus in 2021, 13 people had been killed.

KP CM Gandapur said soon after learning about the incident, the police reached the spot and started relief operations, adding that rest of the people in the convoy had been protected.

Pakistani leadership strongly condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the Chinese.

In a statement issued by the Presidency, President Asif Ali Zardari expressed deep grief over the deaths of the precious lives and conveyed his condolences to the families of the deceased. 

“Anti-Pakistan elements will never succeed in damaging friendship,” President Zardari asserted.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited the Chinese embassy in Islamabad and extended their condolences.

"The attack on the bus of foreign citizens in Shangla is a cowardly act of violence that we unequivocally condemn," stated Minister Naqvi.

"Our hearts go out to the families of the deceased, and we stand firmly with them in their time of sorrow."

Minister Naqvi reiterated the nation's commitment to supporting its steadfast ally.

"We are with the government of China and the families of the deceased citizens in this hour of sorrow," he affirmed.

“Enemies have targeted the citizens of Pakistan’s extremely trusted friendly country. This was an attack on Pakistan,” the minister added.

“The enemy will be given a strong response to this attack,” Naqvi vowed.

Former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari condemned the attack and expressed his grief on the deaths of Chinese nationals.

 In a statement posted on X, he said that the planners and the facilitators of the terror incident should be punished severely.

Extending his condolences to the Chinese government and praying for the speedy recovery of the injured, he said, “The miscreants of the Bisham incident cannot escape punishment.”

Reporter: Sohail Khan