Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday called on Chinese Consulate Lahore to express condolences over the loss of five Chinese citizens in a suicide attack in the Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Maryam Nawaz said the whole Pakistani nation is sad over the loss of Chinese nationals.  She added that the Pakistanis equally share the grief of the affected Chinese families.

“All possible steps are being taken to protect the Chinese residents working in Punjab.”

Expressing commitment to continue the series of cooperation and collaboration, Maryam Nawaz Sharif said that Pakistan and China are great friends and friendship cannot be affected by cowardly actions.

“The attack on Chinese citizens is a sinister plot to sabotage development and prosperity,” she said, adding they will ensure strict implementation of the Chinese brothers' foolproof security policy.

The Consulate General of China thanked Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz for coming to condole.

Senior Provincial Minister Maryam Aurangzeb, Pervez Rashid, Chief Secretary, Secretary Home IG, and other officials were also present.

China called for a comprehensive investigation following an attack on a convoy in Bisham tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Shangla, resulting in the deaths of five Chinese nationals and one Pakistani, as per statements from the regional police chief and a station house officer (SHO).