Quetta:
At least five people – including three schoolchildren – were martyrated and several others wounded in a suicide attack aimed at a school bus in Khuzdar early Wednesday morning, civilian and military officials said.
The suspected bombers hit an explosively carried vehicle into the school bus as it drove past Zero Point near Rakhshan Hotel, Deputy Commissioner Yasir Iqbal Dashti said, adding that the bus ferries students to Army Public School (ApS) located in Khuzdar Cantonment.
The vehicle was rigged with more than 30 kg of explosives, according to the bombing team.
The military’s media wing stated that “three innocent children and two adults have embraced Shahadat”, and several children have inflicted injuries in the “Feige and Terrible Attacks planned and Orchestrated by the Terrorist State India and executed by its power of attorney in Balochistan”.
ISPR added that India has detached its proxies to spread terror and turmoil in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa through such abhorrent and fair actions after miserably failed on the battlefield.
Shortly after the deadly attack, the security forces threw a string around the area and launched a study. Security was tightened in and around Khuzdar after the bombing, with control points established and patrols intensified to prevent further attacks.
Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti revealed that the intelligence agencies had prior warnings that a power of attorney strike was depicted by enemy forces. “We couldn’t have imagined such brutality where innocent schoolchildren would be targeted,” he told the media at a quick -called press. “This is the true face of our enemies.”
Indian proxies are behind this cruelty, the minister said, adding that Afghanistan’s territory was used as a launch plate for such attacks aimed at destabilizing Balochistan.
Balochistan has been in the grip of a deadly separatist rebellion since the killing of the Baloch chief Nawab Akbar Bugti in a security operation in 2006. The groups involved in the rebellion are supported, trained and bank rolled by India Spy Agency Raw.
“After failing in Operation Bunnianum Marsoos and hunting by military and law enforcement authorities, these Indian terrorist projects are used as a state tool of India to accelerate terrorism in Pakistan against soft targets such as innocent children and civilians,” I ISPR added.
“The use of terrorism as a state policy of the Indian political government is abominable and reflects their low morals and disregarding basic human norms,” it added.
The military also added that planners, monkeys and executors of this Feige Indian sponsored attack will be chased down and brought to justice, and India’s cruel face will be exposed in front of the whole world. “Pakistan armed forces with the support of brave Pakistani nation are united to proclaim Indian sponsored terrorism from Pakistan in its all manifestations.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir rushed to Quetta on an emergency visit where they received a briefing on the Khuzdar attack, the Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.
The premiere condemned the terrorist attack and expressed deep grief over the death of innocent children and their teachers. He expanded his condolences to the surviving families and instructed the authorities to identify and hold them responsible.
President Asif Zardari also condemned the attack as a violation of human rights and expanded compassion for the deprived families.
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that “the conscious target of schoolchildren – innocent non -combatants in every sense – is a red line that must never be crossed. This act violates the most basic principles of humanity and international humanitarian law,” a statement states.
“The state has an obligation to maintain the law and order by strengthening civilian institutions and the rule of law – not through arbitrary kinetic answers,” added it, calling for immediate identification and prosecution of the perpetrators and their enables by legal means. HRCP also emphasized the urgent need for meaningful political dialogue to tackle the deeply rooted problems of representation, governance and distribution of resources in Balochistan.
Condemnations also poured in from different countries. The United States condemned the murder of innocent children “without understanding.” In a statement that was shared on microblogging -site X (formerly Twitter), the US Embassy in Islamabad expressed deep grief over the attack and expanded solidarity with the victims and their families.
“No child should ever fear going to school,” the American Chargé d’Affaires Natalie Baker was reported to say in the statement. “We stand with them in Pakistan and work to end this violence.”
Chinese ambassador Jiang Zaidong also offered “deepest compassion” to the victims’ families and sincere sympathy for the wounded. “We strongly condemn this terrorist attack, expressing our deepest compassion for the deceased and sincere sympathy for the wounded and the abandoned families,” said envoy at a ceremony marking the 74th anniversary of the creation of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan.
“China is against all forms of terrorism and will continue to support Pakistan in promoting terrorist operations, maintaining social stability and protecting people’s safety.”
Officials say that India has been frustrated after its defeat on the military and diplomatic fronts during recent confrontation with Pakistan – and now it has activated its proxy terrorists to loosen chaos in the country.
India considers itself the regional hegemon but DG Erpr [India] Realize this, the better it will be for regional and global peace. “
(With additional input from News Desk)
