3 killed, 21 injured in Mastung blast

Initial reports suggest the explosives were planted by a woman inside the shopping centre.

MASTUNG: A woman and two children were killed while 21 others were injured in an explosion near a shopping centre in Mastung, Balochistan on Wednesday. 

The explosives were planted inside the Owais Shopping Centre in Mastung district which is approximately 60 kilometers away from Quetta.

"The explosives went off when the shopping centre was crowded with women and children who were busy shopping for Eid," said a police official.

The shopping centre was destroyed and the people trapped inside were recovered by administration and the locals.

The injured and the deceased were shifted to Nawab Ghous Bakhsh Memorial Hospital and District Headquarters Hospital.

Deputy Commissioner Mastung Syed Mehrab Shah and a heavy contingent of law enforcement agencies rushed to the site soon after the blast and cordoned off the area.

District Police Officer Abdul Hayee said that according to initial investigation, explosives were planted by a woman inside the shopping centre, adding that the owner of shopping center had not received any threat before the blast.

“Explosives used in the blast were locally made which badly damaged the centre,” he added.

He said that it was the first incident of its nature in the community in which women were targeted.

No group had claimed responsibility for the blast till the filing the report.