Gunmen shot and killed 23 passengers after identifying them and removing them from buses, cars and trucks, police and officials said on Monday, in one of the deadliest attacks in southwestern Pakistan.
Madiha Ali | Moment | Getty Images
Gunmen shot and killed 23 passengers after identifying them and removing them from buses, cars and trucks, police and officials said on Monday, in one of the deadliest attacks in southwestern Pakistan.
Senior police officer Ayub Achakzai said the killing occurred in the Musa Hail district of Balochistan province. The attackers burned at least 10 vehicles before fleeing the scene.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi called the attack “barbaric” in separate statements and vowed that those behind it would not escape justice.
The attack came hours after the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army separatist group warned people to stay off the highway but did not immediately claim responsibility.
Separatists in Balochistan regularly kill workers and others in the country’s eastern Punjab region as part of a campaign to force them out of the province, which has experienced low-level insurgency for years.
Most such killings have previously been blamed on the outlawed group and others demanding independence from the central government in Islamabad. Islamist militants also operate in the province.
About The Author
