22 NATO tankers torched in Quetta

One person was killed as 22 NATO tankers were torched in an attack claimed by the Tehreek-i-Taliban.

QUETTA: One person was killed as unidentified men torched 22 NATO tankers near the Aktharabad bypass in Quetta on Wednesday.

Unidentified men on motorcycles opened fire at about 40 tankers parked near the bypass, as 22 of the tankers caught fire and a driver was killed in the incident. The body was shifted to Bolan Hospital.

The remaining tankers were moved away from the fire and were still in the parking area.

Fire brigade teams failed to reach the spot despite being informed on time, while security forces cordoned off the area and efforts were underway to arrest the attackers.

The Tehreek-i-Taliban claimed the attack, saying its militants carried out an arson attack on NATO tankers in Pakistan as revenge for a scaled-up US drone strike campaign in the country's northwest.

"We claim responsibility for attacking and torching NATO tankers in Quettatoday," Tehreek-i-Taliban spokesman Azam Tariq told AFP, saying the attack on the tankers was carried out by local militants.

"We will further intensify attacks with the intensification of US drone strikes on us," he said.

NATO supply routes remain closed for the sixth day, as supply convoys have come under attack in different parts of Pakistan. Officials of the All Pakistan Oil Tankers Owners Association (APOTOA) have said that over 6,000 containers are parked in different areas of the country. Spokesman APOTOA Israrullah Shanwari said that the government had not provided protection to the parked oil tankers knowing that they have become an easy target for miscreants.