Five killed in Quetta market blast

No group claimed responsibility for the attack till this report was filed


Mohammad Zafar June 25, 2016
Views after bomb blast at Almo Chowk of Quetta. PHOTO: PPI

QUETTA: At least five people, including a child, were killed and 26 others, including two women and seven children, were injured in a blast in Quetta on Friday.

The remote-controlled bomb was planted in a motorcycle parked at the Almo Chowk area of the provincial capital, where people were busy shopping for Ramazan and Eidul Fitr, officials said.

“Five people were killed and 27 others were wounded when the bomb went off at Almo Chowk,” Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Quetta Police, Chaudhry Manzoor Sarwar said. According to officials, two of the deceased died on the spot and two others succumbed to their injuries at the hospital. One more injured victim passed away later in the evening.

“The bomb used between five to seven kilogrammes of explosives,” DIG Sarwar said. He added that it was too early to conclude whether ‘foreign hands’ were behind the attack.

The deceased and wounded were shifted to the Quetta Civil Hospital and the city’s Combined Military Hospital (CMH). The condition of eight wounded was said to be critical. An emergency has been declared at both hospitals.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack till this report was filed. A case has been registered against unknown suspects and investigations are underway.

Condemnations

Condemning the Quetta blast, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said cowardly acts of terrorism could not deter the government’s resolve to root out terrorism from the country.

In a PM House statement, the premier vowed the sacrifices of people would not go in vain and every terrorist would be eliminated from the motherland.

He also prayed for forgiveness of the departed souls and offered condolences to the bereaved families.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan also condemned the blast and expressed sympathies with the bereaved families.

Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Sanaullah Zehri condemned the blast as well and vowed to bring the culprits ‘who killed innocents during Ramazan’ to book.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 25th, 2016.

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