Three FC men among nine killed in Quetta suicide attack

Bomber hits vehicle of paramilitary force; TTP claims responsibility; president, PM,

others condemn blast; one cop killed in firing on police van in separate incident

QUETTA: At least nine people were killed and 35 wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a military convoy near the district courts on Jinnah Road here on Saturday, police and hospital officials said.

Pakistani Taliban spokesman Muhammad Khurasani told Reuters that the group, also known as the TTP, was responsible for the attack.

“The suicide bomber was riding a bicycle close to a Frontier Corps vehicle,” said senior police official Imtiaz Shah.

At least three Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were killed and 15 were injured in the attack that occurred in the city centre in the late afternoon, FC spokesman Khan Wasey said.

A 12-year-old girl was also among the dead, said Ajab Khan, a doctor at the city’s Civil Hospital, where the casualties were taken.

The condition of five injured persons is critical.

Anwarul Haq Kakar the provincial government’s spokesman told a private TV channel that the attack is likely to be in retaliation to the proactive crackdown the government has been conducting against the terrorists. Refusing to share details of the security plan, Kakar added that the crackdown will continue and ‘the good news’ will be shared as it comes.

The blast partially damaged the security forces’ vehicle and shattered the window panes of nearby buildings.

TV footages showed several wounded FC personnel being shifted from the scene.

Rescue and emergency teams reached the blast site. An emergency was declared in all nearby hospitals while the wounded had been shifted to Civil Hospital Quetta.

Rescue teams and law enforcement agencies reached the scene and cordoned off the area.

Initial investigations suggest that 10 to 15 kilograms of explosives were used in the bomb. Several motorcycles and cars were completely destroyed in the attack.

The dead and injured were shifted to Civil Hospital and Bolan Medical Complex.

Earlier, terrorists opened firing at a police mobile on Saryab Road killing one official and injuring three others.

Meanwhile, President Mamnoon Hussain Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and Balochistan governor and chief minister strongly condemned the Quetta blast.

The prime minister directed to provide best treatment facilities to the injured.

The prime minister also directed the officials of the law enforcement agencies to hunt down the culprits responsible for this terror attack.

Meanwhile, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also condemned the attack.

In a press statement, the PPP chairman said that terrorism is a monster and it can only be eliminated through greater national unity and the strengthening of democracy.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan also condemned the terrorist attack and expressed grief over the loss of precious lives. He urged the provincial government to probe the incident and punish the culprits.