Karachi, May 25:
At least 24 people are feared dead and many injured after a powerful explosion ripped through a shuttle train in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on Sunday, officials said.
The banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed responsibility for the blast in Quetta, the capital city of Balochistan province.
The shuttle train was heading from Quetta Cantonment to the city railway station, when it was targeted near Chaman Phatak, the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) said.
When contacted, a senior police official put the death toll at 24 but didn’t rule out a further increase in toll. “The explosion was very powerful when it hit the moving shuttle train,” he said.
At least two doctors at two separate hospitals in Quetta, where the dead bodies and injured were taken, confirmed 20 bodies were in the mortuary.
Both the doctors confirmed over 50 persons, including women and children, were under treatment at the two hospitals. They also said some bodies and a few injured were also taken to the Quetta district hospital.
A BLA spokesperson said the attack was carried out as the train was transporting military personnel from the cantonment area.
Shahid Rind, spokesperson for the Balochistan provincial government, confirmed the death toll had increased from his previous briefing when he put the figure at 14.
Earlier the government said the dead included three personnel of the Frontier Corps.
Pakistan’s Railways Minister Hanif Abbasi has said there were civilian passengers in the shuttle train and the explosion hit the engine and three coaches.
Television channels showed eyewitnesses claiming that they saw an explosive-laden minivan slam into the shuttle train ahead of the blast.
The intensity of the explosion shattered the windshields of nearby vehicles and window panes of nearby buildings.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the incident and said, “Such cowardly acts of terrorism cannot weaken the resolve of the people of Pakistan.” “We remain steadfast in our determination to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” he added.
Balochistan has witnessed a series of such incidents in the past several years. The Jafar Express, which runs between Quetta and Peshawar, has been repeatedly targeted in recent years.