Five Punjabi bus passengers, security man killed in Balochistan attacks

Terrorists killed at least six people in "coordinated" attacks in Balochistan that largely targeted bus passengers based on their ethnicity, police said on Thursday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

"Terrorists have targeted passenger buses and security officials in multiple districts of Balochistan, killing at least five non-local (Punjabi) passengers and a security official," a senior provincial police official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The incident took place in the coastal town of Pasni in Gwadar district.

"They stopped passenger buses and identified non-local travellers," the official added.

The gunmen stopped the bus travelling from Gwadar to Karachi in Kalmat area located between Pasni anad Marra. They forced seven passengers belonging to different cities of Punjab off the bus, shot dead five and took two others with them.

Dozens of militants have carried out the attacks in several districts of the province after they took control of major highways and set up posts to search vehicles, the police official said. In some areas the attacks are still ongoing, he added.

The law enforcement agencies personnel have launched a search operation to hunt down the attackers.

Sepoy martyred in Khuzdar

A sepoy martyred while fighting during an attack by terrorists in Khuzdar.

Sepoy Waqas who belonged to Shakargarh left behind parents, three sisters and a brother to mourn his death. He said laid to rest in Shakargarh with state honour.

Three containers set on fire

Unidentified armed men set ablaze three containers in Tajaban area of Balochistan.

According to the local administration, the containers were loaded with fertilizer and were heading to Afghanistan from Gwadar Port.

The armed men set the vehicles on fire and fled.

President, PM condemn killings

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday strongly condemned the killing of five passengers in a firing incident in the Kalmat area of Gwadar.

The president and prime minister, in their separately issued statements, prayed for peace for the departed souls, early recovery of the injured, and strength for the bereaved families to bear the loss.

“The terrorists are the enemies of the country’s development and prosperity of Balochistan. They cannot see progress in Balochistan,” the president said.

Prime Minister Shehbaz directed the authorities concerned to provide the best possible medical treatment to the injured people and investigate the incident to identify and punish the perpetrators.

Calling the miscreants enemies of peace and development, he said that their cowardly actions of killing innocent people reflected their brutality. “We will never allow the anti-state designs of miscreants to succeed,” he resolved.

Prime Minister Shehbaz praised the security forces and law enforcement agencies for thwarting the nefarious designs of the anti-state elements. The entire nation, including myself, is proud of them, he remarked.

Mohsin Naqvi slams attacks

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement the attacks were "a cowardly act" and "a crime against humanity".

"Targeting travellers by identifying them is barbaric and brutal", he said in a statement.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. However, Baloch separatists have intensified attacks on security forces as well as non-locals in recent weeks.

Earlier this month, ethnic Baloch separatists attacked a train with 450 passengers on board, sparking a two-day siege during which dozens of people were killed.

Days later, at least five paramilitaries were killed in a vehicle-borne suicide attack.

Both assaults were claimed by the separatist Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).

The group also launched coordinated attacks last year that included taking control of a major highway and shooting dead travellers from other ethnic groups.

Reporters Essa Tareen, Ishtiaq Rabbani and Awais Kiyani/Agencies