Militant attack: Bomb targeting train kills one near Sibi

Remote-controlled IED blast also leaves five passengers injured

QUETTA: A Rawalpindi-bound passenger train was hit by a bomb, killing one man and injuring five others near Sibi on Tuesday.

Terrorists remotely triggered an improvised explosive device (IED) on the tracks near Mithiri, around 28 kilometres away from Sibi, as the Jaffar Express chugged past, police said.

The bomb ripped through the second compartment of the train, killing a passenger, namely Mehboob Ali from Quetta, and injuring five more, said Railways Controller Muhammad Kashif.

“The IED was remotely detonated that damaged two compartments of the train which subsequently derailed,” he added.



Personnel of the Frontier Corps, police and other law enforcement agencies cordoned off the bombsite. The victims were shifted to the nearby Sibi District Headquarters Hospital, where doctors said their wounds were not life-threatening.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but many Punjab-bound trains have been targeted by Baloch separatists in the past.

The latest blast suspended railway traffic for hours. The Lahore-bound Akbar Bugti Express and the Karachi-bound Bolan Mail were also stopped for security reasons. The traffic was restored after security clearance.

Chief Minister Sanaullah Zehri announced a cash grant of Rs1 million for the man who died in the train bombing.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 6^th,  2016.