Eight killed, 16 hurt in Chilas bus firing

CHILAS: Eight people were killed and 16 injured after unidentified assailants opened fire on a passenger bus on the Karakoram Highway, police said on Saturday.

Following the attack, the driver of the bus lost control and the bus collided with a truck which ignited a fire and burnt the truck, killing the driver instantly. The bus was traveling from Ghizar district of Gilgit-Baltistan to Rawalpindi.

According to a passenger in the bus, there were 19 people, including women and children, at the time of the incident. Bullets hit 16 passengers. The condition of several injured is critical.

Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan, Governor Syed Mehdi Shah and opposition leader Maisam Kazim have strongly condemned the incident and demanded immediate arrest of the accused. The deputy commissioner of Chilas said the injured and bodies were being shifted to a nearby hospital. He said the bus bearing registration number BLN-4647 was owned by a private company. GB Home Minister Shams Lone termed the attack “open terrorism” and pledged that the attackers would be brought to justice. He also said that Indian involvement in the attack could not be ruled out.